India, which is pressing hard for implementation of SAFTA (South Asian Free Trade Agreement) in order to achieve full potential of the agreement and to enhance intra SAARC trade flows, has urged the Saarc countries including India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Afghahistan, Nepal and Bhutan to bring down all protectionist trade barriers to achieve regional economies of scale at a much greater pace. Trade ministers from the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries are in Maldives for the fifth ministerial meeting for better implementation of the SAFTA agreement.
Anand Sharma, the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, underscored that serious attempts are being made to reduce the sensitive list under the trade liberalization program of SAFTA. He also affirmed that the focus should be to bring down the tariff levels for those items which still remain within the sensitive list. He advocated the nations to rapidly break down barriers in key sectors like textiles, pharmaceuticals, infrastructure, electronic goods, automobiles and agriculture.
The Commerce Minister also opined that India would provide $100 million as loan for each of its neighbouring countries to undertake developmental work in basic infrastructure projects and help them develop infrastructure like roads and power. India would extend such development loan through its EXIM bank, interest rates close to LIBOR (London Inter Bank Offer Rate).
Highlighting the multiplying energy needs of the SAARC countries, Sharma advocated for meeting the need to build greater energy security through trans-national electricity grids. The SAARC region needs to concentrate on all possibilities of cross-border electricity trade which would help in better energy load management as well as energy security in South Asia.
Earlier, during the meeting with Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed at Male, Anand Sharma held wide range of discussions on economic cooperation between the both nations. Sharma outlined the new long-term concessional credit scheme for project exports launched by the Government of India and assured to encourage major Indian companies to participate in infrastructure building in Maldives.
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