BIMSTEC
2023 JUL 19
Preliminary >
International Relations > Regional groupings > International groupings
Why in news?
- Recently, the first-ever Foreign Ministers’ meeting of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) began in Bangkok, Thailand.
About BIMSTEC:
- BIMSTEC stands for Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation
- It is a regional organization comprising seven Member States lying in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal constituting a contiguous regional unity.
- This sub-regional organization came into being in 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration.
- The Permanent Secretariat of BIMSTEC was established in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
- The Chairmanship of BIMSTEC rotates among the Member States.
Members:
- It constitutes seven Member States:
- Five deriving from South Asia, including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and
- Two from Southeast Asia, including Myanmar and Thailand.
Importance:
- BIMSTEC constitutes a bridge between South and South East Asia and represents a reinforcement of relations among these countries.
- The BIMSTEC region is home to around 1.5 billion people which constitute around 22% of the global population with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of 2.7 trillion economy.
PRACTICE QUESTION:
Which of the following statements are true about BIMSTEC?
1. BIMSTEC is a regional organization comprising of nine member states.
2. The Chairmanship of BIMSTEC rotates among the member states.
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer