KATHMANDU, Dec 9: The Heads of State/Government of the Member States of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) issued special messages to commemorate the Thirty-ninth SAARC Charter Day on Friday. The Foreign Ministers of Nepal, Maldives, and Sri Lanka also issued dedicatory messages in commemoration of the thirty-ninth SAARC Charter Day.
In their messages, the Heads of State/Government and Ministers for Foreign Affairs conveyed greetings to the people and Governments of the Member States on the occasion of the Charter Day. They also reiterated their firm resolve and commitment to further strengthen SAARC to fully realize its Charter objectives.
As SAARC Turns Forty…
The Secretary General of SAARC also issued a message to mark the thirty-ninth SAARC Charter Day. In his message, the Secretary General extended warmest felicitations to the peoples and Governments of the Member States and wished for peace, progress, and prosperity in the region.
Likewise, the specialized bodies and regional centers of SAARC based in SAARC capitals organized celebratory events to observe the Charter Day on Friday. The Secretary General of SAARC Golam Sarwar of and his spouse will host a Reception to commemorate the thirty-ninth SAARC Charter Day on Monday in Kathmandu, in which Vice President Ram Sahaya Prasad Yadav will be the Chief Guest.
The Heads of State/Government of South Asia founded SAARC at the First SAARC Summit in Dhaka, Bangladesh, by adopting its Charter on December 8, 1985, thereby creating the largest regional organization representing one quarter of the global population. Since then, December 8 every year is commemorated as the SAARC Charter Day across the region.
As enshrined in its Charter, the primary objective of SAARC is to promote the welfare of the peoples and to improve their quality of life through accelerated social progress and economic development in the region. A forum of eight countries in South Asia that are bound by ties of history and culture, SAARC is a tangible manifestation of the determination of its member states to promote peace, stability, amity, and progress in the region through strict adherence to the principles of sovereign equality, territorial integrity, national independence, non-use of force and non-interference in the internal affairs of other states, and peaceful settlement of disputes.
