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SAARC Countries List | SAARC Summit 1985-2021

(SAARC) whose full name is South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation.

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SAARC Countries List | SAARC Summit 1985-2021

Table of Contents

When was SAARC established?

SAARC was established in 1985 by seven countries, these seven countries were –

India
Pakistan
Bangladesh
Nepal
Bhutan
Sri Lanka
Maldives

These seven countries did it on 7 and 8 December 1985. In which the heads of state of all the seven countries participated. Seven neighboring countries of South Asia made the first start of regional cooperation in world politics. At present, eight countries are included in the SAARC countries.

When did Afghanistan join the SAARC organization

Afghanistan was included in this regional grouping on 13 November 2005 at the 14th Summit of SAARC (India) India and became the eighth member on 3 April 2007.

Apart from Maldives, all the countries of this federation – India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka are part of the Indian subcontinent. All these countries are not only part of the subcontinent but are also linked to each other by history, geography, religion and culture. Before partition, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh were integral parts of the same administration and economy. But after independence they separated.

Where is the headquarter of SAARC

The headquarters (secretariat) of SAARC is in the capital of Nepal (Kathmandu).

Who is the present Secretary General of SAARC

The current Secretary General of SAARC, Ashla Ruban is from Verakoon (Sri Lanka) who assumed office on 1 March 2020.

How is the Secretary General of SAARC elected?

The SAARC organization is governed by the Secretary-General appointed by all the member countries. The term of the Secretary General is three years. Appointment of Secretary General Member Country according to alphabetical order.

Purpose and History of SAARC Establishment

President of Bangladesh Ziaur Rahman who was the President of Bangladesh in the 1970s. Rahman proposed the establishment of a trading bloc comprising South Asian countries. The idea of regional cooperation among South Asian countries was once again introduced in 1980. In 1981, a meeting of the foreign secretaries of the seven countries was held in Colombo for the first time. Five important broad areas for regional cooperation were chosen in this meeting.

Objectives of establishment of SAARC organization

To develop the quality of life of the countries of South Asia by promoting the welfare of their population.
To accelerate regional, economic development, social advancement and cultural development in the Member States and to provide opportunities for their development in a dignified manner to all peoples.
To provide stability by promoting collective self-reliance among the countries of South Asia.
Trying to understand each other’s problems by increasing mutual trust.
To enhance cooperation and mutual participation in the social and scientific as well as economic, technological, and cultural fields.
To strengthen relations with other developing countries of the world.
To cooperate on matters of common interest in international fora.
Contributing to enhancing cooperation with regional and international organizations with common goals and objectives

The above declarations were accepted for South Asian Regional Cooperation at the Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in New Delhi in 1983. In this meeting, the Ministers launched Integrated Purchase Scheme in nine agreed areas – Rural Development, Agriculture, Mass, Telecom, Population and Health Action, Posts, Transport, New Technology, Science, Art, Sports and Culture.

List of SAARC Secretary General from 1985 to 2021

Serial Number	Name	Country	Take Office	Term is Over
1	‘Abdul Ahsan’	Bangladesh	16-01-1985	15-10-1989
2	Kant Kishore Bhargava	India	17-10-1989	31-12-1991
3	Ibrahim Hussain	Maldives	01-01-1992	31-12-1993
4	Yadav Kant Silwal	Nepal	01-01-1994	31-12-1995
5	Naeem U Hussain	Pakistan	01-01-1996	31-12-1998
6	Nihal Rodrigo	Shri Lanka	01-01-1999	10-01-2002
7	Q. A. M. A. Rahim	Bangladesh	11-01-2002	28-02-2005
8	Chenkyab Dorji	Bhutan	01-03-2005	29-02-2008
9	Sheelkant Sharma	India	01-03-2008	28-02-2011
10	Fatima Dhian Saeed	Maldives	01-03-2011	11-03-2012
11	Ahmed Saleem	Maldives	12-03-2012	28-02-2014
12	Arjun Bahadur Thapa	Nepal	01-03-2014	28-02-2017
13	Amjad Hussain B. Sial	Pakistan	01-03-2017	01-03-2020
14	Ashla Ruban Veracoon	Shri Lanka	01-03-2020	Current
15	——	—–	——–	——–

SAARC Summit from 1986 to 2021

Serial Number	Date	Country	Place	head of state
1	8 December 1985	Bangladesh	Dhaka	Ziaur Rahman
2	16-17 November 1986	India	Bangalore	Rajiv Gandhi
3	2-4 November 1987	Nepal	Kathmandu	Marichman Singh Shrestha
4	29-31 December 1988	Pkistan	Islamabad	Benazir Bhutto
5	21-23 November 1990	Maldives	Male	Maumoon Abdul Gayoom
6	21 December 1991	Shri Lanka	Colombo	Ransinghe Premadasa
7	10-11 April 1993	Bangladesh	Dhaka	Khalida zia
8	2-4 May 1995	India	New Delhi	P. V. Narsimmha Rao
9	12-14 May 1997	Maldives	Male	Maumoon Abdul Gayoom
10	29-31 July 1998	Shri Lanka	Colombo	Chandrika Kumartunga
11	4-6 January 2002	Nepal	Kathmandu	Sher Bahadur Deua
12	2-6 January 2004	Pakistan	Islamabad	Mir Zafarullah Khan
13	12-13 November 2005	Bangladesh	Dhaka	Khalida Zia
14	3-4 April 2007	India	New Delhi	Manmohan Singh
15	1-3 August 2008	Shri Lanka	Colombo	Mahundra Rajpakshe
16	28-29 April 2010	Bhutan	Thimphu	Jimmie Thinley
17	10-11 November 2011	Maldives	Addu	Mohammad Nashid
18	26-27 November 2014	Nepal	Kathmandu	Sushil Koirala
19	9-10 November 2016	Pakistan	Islamabad	Cancelled
20	Not Decided yet	———	———-	——–
—–	——	——-	———	——-