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| Sunday, 5 October 2003 |
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Taking S. Asia forward Protectionism still exists in the South Asian region. Therefore, if the countries in the region wish to move forward, they will have to take some difficult political decisions, Regional Trade Coordinator South Asia, World Bank, Tercan Baysan told a regional workshop on 'Trade Policies of South Asian Countries' held in Colombo last week. He said South Asia's poor would be among the beneficiaries of wider and faster trade liberalisation in the region. The report 'Trade policies in South Asia-An overview' looks at the key aspects of the current trade regimes in Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Nepal and offers recommendations on some of the key issues facing policy makers on trade reform. The report is the first comprehensive review of South Asian trade regimes and comes at a time when the WTO meetings in Cancun have failed. It provides a comprehensive overview of major issues facing progress in the region including agricultural subsidies and preferential trading arrangements. Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Ravi Karunanayake said the UNF Government, in keeping with its vision, hopes to integrate Sri Lanka to the world through free trade agreements. Gone are the days when protectionism gave more economic growth; now openness provides more economic growth. It increases employment while reducing poverty. He said that we should be open to agriculture-related issues, but multilateral trading should come to stay as it is the way forward. The path to progress is painful, but has to be taken in the interest of the majority. The workshop was organised by the Institute of Policy Studies. |
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