BIMSTEC 2017

The 15th Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation
(BIMSTEC) ministerial meeting was held at Soaltee Crowne Plaza in Kathmandu, Nepal on 10th
August 2017.
Nepals Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba inaugurated this meeting and it was chaired by
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Krishna Bahadur Mahara.

Important Highlights

The main agenda of the meeting was to finalise a free trade agreement among the
BIMSTEC members including negotiations on market access for professionals and to
reduce the duty on trading goods.
It also meant to finalise the date of the fourth BIMSTEC Summit that will be hosted by
the Nepal, the current chair of the sub-regional forum.
Issues concerning trade in services and goods, investments and connectivity were also
discussed at the meet.
The inaugural procession was attended by the Foreign and External Affairs Ministers
from the member nations including Bhutan, Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka and the
Deputy Foreign Ministers from Myanmar and Thailand.
India was represented by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who arrived at
Kathmandu on the morning of 10th August.
Swaraj held brief talkings and meetings with President Bidhya Devi Bhandari and Nepal
Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.
Furthermore, after the inauguration ceremony, all the delegates had a brief bilateral
meeting, following which they were invited for dinner gathering hosted by Nepal Foreign
Minister Krishna Bahadur Mahara.
The two-day meet was concluded on 11th August 2017, by the end of the day.