Our region continues to suffer from terrorism affecting the very core of our social fabric. While I offer my sympathies to those in our region who have been victims of the recent inhuman terror attacks, I reiterate Sri Lanka’s pledge to standby our common commitment and resolve to combat this scourge individually and collectively to rid our region as a whole of the menace of terrorism.

Distinguished Ministers of Foreign Affairs of SAARC Member States
Your Excellencies
Ladies and Gentlemen

It is indeed a pleasure for me to welcome you to this informal Meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of SAARC Member States on the sidelines of the Sixty-third Session of the General Assembly in New York. May I offer a special welcome to our colleague from Nepal who is attending a SAARC Council of Ministers Meeting for the first time.

Dear colleagues,
Our region continues to suffer from terrorism affecting the very core of our social fabric. While I offer my sympathies to those in our region who have been victims of the recent inhuman terror attacks, I reiterate Sri Lanka’s pledge to standby our common commitment and resolve to combat this scourge individually and collectively to rid our region as a whole of the menace of terrorism.

Excellencies,
We meet today, just about two months after our constructive deliberations that preceded the 15th SAARC Summit in Colombo.  This occasion will therefore be a useful opportunity to focus our attention on the implementation of the important decisions of the 15th SAARC Summit and its preceding meetings.

The successful implementation of decisions flowing from our Summits depends on many factors which include dedicated action and follow-up by Member States.  A key element that determines our Organization’s success is the strength of the partnership between Member States and the SAARC Secretariat in formulating our work plans and action. In recognition of the important role of the SAARC Secretariat, Sri Lanka, as Chair, held consultations with H.E. Dr. Sheel Kant Sharma, in Colombo immediately after the SAARC Summit. Following these consultations, the SAARC Secretariat has circulated some useful documents prepared by the Secretariat, namely, the SAARC Work Plan 2008-2009, and Proposed Course of Action on Key Decisions taken at the 15th Summit including proposed action. I wish to thank the SAARC Secretariat for the preparation of these documents that will assist and guide Member States on steps to be taken for implementation of the decisions taken by our Heads of State and Government in Colombo, and also facilitate our discussions today.

At the 15th SAARC Summit held in Colombo last month, our Heads of State and Government chose as the dominant theme that should form the basis of our work, “Partnership for Growth for Our People”. This theme recognises the importance of deeper engagement of people, the central stake-holders in the SAARC process, and the need to exert our collective efforts in all our undertakings to uplift the lives of people in the region as a whole. We should stay focused on this ultimate objective in overcoming obstacles and delays to achieve goals and targets that we have set for ourselves and take action without delay in areas where the Heads of State and Government have given us firm directions. For this purpose, creating an enabling atmosphere is important.

A few steps that Member States could take in this direction include:
(1)    Ratifying all Agreements and Conventions that we have signed so far;
(2)    Contribute our assessed funds to the SAARC Development Fund;
                       and
(3)    Announce dates as quickly as possible for the various Meetings that we have undertaken to host.
I am pleased to inform that Sri Lanka has ratified the Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters, and I have had the pleasure of handing over the Instrument of Ratification to the SAARC Secretary General, Dr. Sheel Kant Sharma, here in New York. We have also ratified the Agreement on the Establishment of the South Asian University, and the Instrument of Ratification will be deposited with the SAARC Secretariat within the next two weeks.

You will recall that at the 15th SAARC Summit in Colombo, taking into account the issues pertaining to the Global Food Crisis, our leaders adopted the Colombo Statement on Food Security. This was hailed by many in South Asia as a timely initiative not only to ensure food security in our region but also to make South Asia, once again, the granary of the world. Addressing the 63rd Session of the UN General Assembly, His Excellency President Mahinda Rajapaksa emphasised that “the global food crisis has become a frightening actuality and has the potential to assume even more dangerous proportions if we fail to take urgent and collection action”. He pledged that “through a series of projects with regional impact, Sri Lanka will contribute to the goal of increasing food production, investing more in agriculture and research, and sharing technologies and best practices.” As a result, we accord utmost priority to the Extraordinary Meeting of the SAARC Agriculture Ministers that will be held in New Delhi in early November where implementation of the Colombo Statement on Food Security will be discussed. The Ministerial Delegation from Sri Lanka to this Meeting will be making a presentation on the topic “Development and Sharing of Agricultural Technologies”. And we intend to follow up our focus on this with suitable projects for collaboration among SAARC member States.

Excellencies, during Sri Lanka’s chairmanship of our regional organisation, there will be over sixty meetings at various levels under the SAARC umbrella. Some of these meetings will flow directly from the decisions taken by our Heads of State and Government at the 15th SAARC Summit in Colombo. Sri Lanka has voluntarily undertaken the task of hosting the First Meeting of the SAARC Food Bank Board on 15-16 October at the Hilton Hotel in Colombo. We have conveyed information to the SAARC Secretariat regarding the arrangements that have been made to host this Board Meeting, and we look forward to early confirmation of participation by the members of the Board. As this is the first meeting of the Board where important issues relating to the implementation of the Agreement establishing the Food Bank will be discussed, it is vital that all members of the Board participate at the meeting to ensure effective operationalization of the Food Bank.

In addition, Sri Lanka will be hosting Meetings of SAARC Transport Ministers, Energy Ministers, Ministers of Education and Higher Education, Ministers of Parliamentary Affairs and a Ministerial Meeting on Children during our Chairmanship.  Dates have already been announced for the Conference of Ministers of Parliamentary Affairs (10-11 February 2009) and the Meeting of Energy Ministers (26-27 January 2009). We will be announcing specific dates shortly for the Meeting of Transport Ministers which we hope to hold in November this year, the Ministers of Education and Higher Education which we hope to host in March 2009 and the Ministerial Meeting on Children which we hope to host in April next year. We also hope to convene the SAARC Working Group on Tourism in 2009. I seek the invaluable cooperation of all my colleagues here in ensuring that these meetings can be held as scheduled with participation of representatives of all Member States of SAARC to ensure effective and successful implementation of our pledge at the 15th SAARC Summit, “Partnership for Growth for Our People”.

The thirty-fourth Session of the Programming Committee will be held in Sri Lanka on 19-20 November 2008. We hope to receive early confirmation of participation from all Member States to hold the Meeting on the proposed dates.

I look forward most eagerly to welcoming Your Excellencies back to Sri Lanka in February 2009 for the Thirty-first Session of the Council of Ministers which will be preceded by Meetings of the Programming Committee and the Standing Committee.

Excellencies, establishing the SAARC Regional Centre on Culture, which has now for several years been on the SAARC Agenda, is something Sri Lanka will fulfil during our current chairmanship. We hope to host the Meeting of the Governing Board of the Cultural Centre in 2009 to operationalize the work of the Regional Centre.

Before I conclude, let me emphasise that the last Summit in Colombo, in its theme “Partnership for Growth for Our People”, followed closely, the theme of the 14th Summit in New Delhi which was “Connectivity”. “Connectivity” and “Partnership with People” have now become the driving force of SAARC which recognizes the importance of deeper engagement of the people as the central stake-holders in the SAARC process. His Excellency President Mahinda Rajapaksa, building further on the importance of connectivity and partnership, emphasised at the Colombo Summit that “continuity, consistency and coordination are all vital to have the desired practical effect towards our goal of regional economic integration.” We must constantly remind ourselves therefore of the need to stay focused on working together towards the improvement of the lives of people in our region as a whole. For this purpose, it is important for Governments to be engaged beyond the state sector, through greater connectivity and collaboration, with diverse sectors of the people of each nation: those leading the economic processes in the corporate sector; economic, technical and other research institutions; professional groups that influence policy formulation in their respective spheres; academia; the media and civil society; and the numerous rural and urban groups that do not fit into any of these groups. All this would not only help uplift the lives of the people of the region but also enhance the reach of SAARC and help its wider acceptance.

While thanking Your Excellencies for your presence here today at this Meeting, I would like to reiterate my confidence in our ability to work together to fulfil the objectives of SAARC. Sri Lanka remains committed to successfully guiding the SAARC process during our chairmanship through consultation and sharing of views with all.