A word search on `BIMSTEC' covering many media websites yielded discouragingly few results. Clearly, last week's meeting in New Delhi of the trade ministers of the five rim countries of the Bay of Bengal -- Bangladesh, India. Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand -- has not received the media attention it deserved. This is all the more surprising given the fact that Thailand was represented by its high profile deputy Prime Minister, Supachai Panitchpakdi, famous not only as BIMSTEC's architect, but also as the Director-General designate of the World Trade Organisation. Dr Panitchpakdi will take charge of WTO after the current three-year term of incumbent Mike Moore, the Deity of Seattle, comes to an end.
BIMSTEC (The Bangladesh, India. Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic Cooperation) began as BISTEC in June 1997 at a meeting of the trade ministers of four member countries and in December 1997 expanded to include Myanmar, thus encircling the entire rim of the Bay of Bengal within its membership. Part of the disinterest in BIMSTEC may have to do with its odd name. A more evocative name like a "Bay of Bengal Community" may generate greater public enthusiasm for its activities. A greater awareness regarding the potential for trade, tourism and business in this region and the fact that BIMSTEC is a bridge to Southeast Asia for India can also help change perceptions here.
Admittedly, the timing of BIMSTEC's launch was unfortunate since within weeks of the first ministerial meeting in 1997, Thailand got embroiled in a major economic crisis and India found itself living through a phase of political uncertainty due to a succession of coalition governments. With Thailand and India, the two major players in the group, more confident of themselves today, BIMSTEC appears set for revival.
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BIMSTEC's New Delhi trade ministers' meeting agreed to set up a group to study the idea of moving from a preferential trade area to a free trade area. Given the historical, geographical, cultural and economic ties that link the countries of this region together, it is not surprising that the rim countries of the Bengal sea have finally decided to open up their borders to greater and freer trade. While at the governmental level BIMSTEC trade ministers have had only a couple of meetings so far, the group has been more active at the non-governmental level, with business and academic roundtables exploring the agenda for co-operation.
The areas of co-operation identified so far include trade, tourism, e-commerce and infrastructure development. A highway and a railway line linking Thailand to India through Myanmar and Bangladesh is a major infrastructure project which has been talked about for some time. BIMSTEC can also take up a hub port project for the region, developing Chittagong (Bangladesh) as a major hub port for the rim.
At the second ministerial meeting in December 1998, it was decided that BIMSTEC would create sector-specific groups with one country chairing each group. Bangladesh was placed in charge of two groups on trade and investment and transport and communication, India on technology, Myanmar on energy, Sri Lanka on tourism and Thailand on fisheries. At a BIMSTEC Academic Roundtable in Bangkok last September, Thai delegates spoke enthusiastically of giving a regional focus to "Buddhist tourism" and "Buddhist diplomacy" through BIMSTEC. India, Mynamar and Thailand showed great interest in developing regional initiatives in energy sharing, particularly in natural gas, and construction of railway lines and highways. Sri Lanka was keen on expanding trade and increasing access to Asean markets. Participants from Bangladesh also emphasised the need for regional initiatives in human development, considering a large part of the world's poorest live in this region.
For India and the other South Asian members BIMSTEC is a bridge to Asean, Asia's more prosperous and active regional association. Thailand sees BIMSTEC as a gateway to India, a country with which it has had a long historical and cultural relationship. Interestingly, China has shown some interest in coming on board and has repeatedly signaled the growing interface between its south-western province of Yunnan and Myanmar and India. BIMSTEC is however not yet ready to expand its present scope and membership and would like to confine itself to the rim countries of the Bay of Bengal.
The only problem, however, is that BIMSTEC's South Asian members have yet to fully learn from Asean that freer trade and regional economic co-operation can offer win-win solutions to the problems of backwardness. Bangladesh remains reticent about opening up its transport infrastructure to India's north-east and deriving all the benefit of economic development in this remote corner of India. It is also as yet unenthusiastic about selling its energy resources to India. Protectionist lobbies in India are equally unenthusiastic about opening up to neighbouring economies. Attitudes to greater openness have to change for the group to really take off.
As BIMSTEC gains momentum and relevance it may find itself constrained by its name into excluding some of the regions more dynamic countries like Singapore. After all, Singapore is the most important hub port of the region. A half-way solution to this problem could be found if Singapore's idea of launching an Asian Free Trade Area (AFTA) gains momentum. Then both Asean and BIMSTEC could merge into one large common market. Asia would then have a free trade area of its own, distinct from FTAs with a European and North American flavour. However, this still seems a distant dream given the low level of enthusiasm for even limited initiatives like BIMSTEC.