New Delhi, April 1 (KNN) Promoting regional integration in South Asia is a must for countries in the bloc to become part of the global value chain, Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit has said.
 
"Politics often trumps economics in the region," Basit said hinting at the turbulent relations between India and Pakistan.  To get out of it we need to be more realistic, he added.
 
The Pakistan High Commissioner was speaking at an interactive session organised by industry body Assocham on Monday.
 
To promote SAARC agenda, it is important to create level playing fields and interdependencies, he said.
 
A few bilateral development agencies are also actively promoting Intra-SAARC trade. Under the aegis of SAARC Tarde Promotion Network based in Nepal, GIZ- the German development agency, is supporting interventions in SAARC value chains.
 
FISME the leading federation of micro, small and medium enterprises of India has initiated a project to develop the intra SAARC value chain of two important regional products, Fruit Juices and Textiles. Under the project, Juice producers of the SAARC region will be linked to the Indian market and textiles suppliers from India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka will be supported to link with the value chain for Readymade Garments of Bangladesh.
 
Commenting on the project, Dr D Gandhikumar, President, FISME, mentioned that such initiatives will force open the trade barriers within the two large nations of the region, India and Pakistan and help in developing the regional value chains as a major player in the global value chain.(KNN/DB)