CPD Policy Brief 10
Value Chains in BIMSTEC Region
Current Status, Possibilities and Challenges
The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is a collaborative effort with the objective to stimulate and broaden cooperation among the seven member countries of the regional bloc: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The BIMSTEC was established in 1997 with the mandate to stimulate economic cooperation and business to business collaboration through targeted measures and by developing land and maritime connectivity between South and Southeast Asian countries. However, since its establishment about two decades back the progress in terms of deepening economic ties has been rather insignificant, although member countries are in the process of implementing various projects in the fourteen mandated areas of cooperation (BIMSTEC, 2018). In this backdrop, the paper has made an attempt to examine and assess the current state of cooperation among the BIMSTEC members, review the lessons from the experience of East and South-East Asian regions in developing Global Value Chains (GVCs) and Regional Value Chains (RVCs) and examine the status, challenges and opportunities concerning GVCs and RVCs from the vantage point of the BIMSTEC region. The policy brief is based on the research report which elaborates the above issues and highlights the key points in this connection.
Author: Estiaque Bari
Publication period: May 2019
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