Enhancing Regional Trade Potentials and Economic Cooperation among the Saarc Countries: Exploring Major Challenges and Propositions

Abstract

Sustainable economic growth of countries nowadays relies much on the regional economic alliance developed among countries. This type of integration is gradually spreading to different parts of the world including the South Asia. SAARC is an organization of South Asian countries, mainly institutionalized as an economic alliance to work with collaboration and accelerate their socio-economic development. But, since the inception of SAARC, the achievement in regional economic integration is insignificant and the level of intra-regional trade flow among SAARC countries is still very low compared to the rest of the world.  The region accounts for a very insignificant share of world trade but persistent high levels of tariff barriers. The present study attempts to examine the prospects and briefly reviews and identifies constraints to intra-regional trade and modes of economic cooperation in the region. It aims to enhance cooperation amongst members in order to improve competitiveness and put forward a set of recommendations for the policy makers requiring relentless determination to make the alliance successful in future.

Keywords: SAARC, Economic Integration, Challenges, Intra-regional trade.