Which of the following statement(s) is/are correct about the ‘Bay of Bengal
Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation’?
1. Originally, the BIMSTEC was formed as BIST-EC with four countries i.e.
Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand (Economic Cooperation).
2. With the admission of Myanmar, the BIMSTEC was completed in the year
1997 and since then the grouping has five member states known as
BIMSTEC together.
3. BIMSTEC member states have signed a ‘Free Trade Agreement’ between
themselves in the year 2018 to allow trade of professionals and duty cuts on
traded goods.
Select the correct codes from below -
Explanation - BIMSTEC is an economic bloc that came into being on 6th June
1997 through the Bangkok Declaration. It aims to accelerate economic growth
and social progress among members across multiple sectors — trade,
technology, energy, transport, tourism and fisheries, agriculture, public health,
poverty alleviation, counter-terrorism, environment, culture, people to people
contact and climate change. Headquartered in Dhaka, BIMSTEC is an inter-
regional grouping that seeks to foster regional and economic cooperation among
nations in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal — India, Thailand,
Myanmar, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Bhutan. The BIMSTEC region is
home to roughly 22 per cent of the global population with a combined GDP of
over $2.7 trillion. Initially, the economic bloc was formed with four countries with
the acronym ‘BIST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic
Cooperation). With the entrance of Myanmar in 1997, the grouping was renamed
‘BIMST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic
Cooperation). Finally, with the entrance of Nepal and Bhutan at the 6th Ministerial
Meeting in 2004, the grouping was named Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-
Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). In 2018, India
aggressively pushed for the conclusion of a long-pending FTA among BIMSTEC
nations but differences between India and Thailand over market
Explanation - BIMSTEC is an economic bloc that came into being on 6th June
1997 through the Bangkok Declaration. It aims to accelerate economic growth
and social progress among members across multiple sectors — trade,
technology, energy, transport, tourism and fisheries, agriculture, public health,
poverty alleviation, counter-terrorism, environment, culture, people to people
contact and climate change. Headquartered in Dhaka, BIMSTEC is an inter-
regional grouping that seeks to foster regional and economic cooperation among
nations in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal — India, Thailand,
Myanmar, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Bhutan. The BIMSTEC region is
home to roughly 22 per cent of the global population with a combined GDP of
over $2.7 trillion. Initially, the economic bloc was formed with four countries with
the acronym ‘BIST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic
Cooperation). With the entrance of Myanmar in 1997, the grouping was renamed
‘BIMST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic
Cooperation). Finally, with the entrance of Nepal and Bhutan at the 6th Ministerial
Meeting in 2004, the grouping was named Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-
Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). In 2018, India
aggressively pushed for the conclusion of a long-pending FTA among BIMSTEC
nations but differences between India and Thailand over market