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Secretary General of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation

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Secretary-General of the
South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation
since 03 March 2014
ResidenceKathmandu, Nepal
AppointerCouncil of Ministers of the SAARC nations
Term lengthThree year terms
FormationSAARC Charter: 16 January 1987
First holderBangladesh Abul Ahsan
Websitesaarc-sec.org/Former-Secretaries-General/19/

The Secretary–General of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, is the head of the SAARC Secretariat, which is headquartered in Kathmandu, Nepal.[1] The SAARC is an economic and geopolitical union between the eight South Asian member nations, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.[2] The Secretary-General is appointed for a three-year term by election by a council of Ministers from member states. The Secretary-General is assisted by eight deputies, one from each nation, who also reside in Kathmandu.[1]The SAARC Secretariat was established in Kathmandu on 16 January 1987 by the Bangladeshi diplomat Abul Ahsan, who was its first Secretary-General, and was inaugurated by King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah of Nepal. Since its creation, its member nations have contributed to a total of twelve General Secretaries. Nepal’s former Foreign Secretary Arjun Bahadur Thapa is the current Secretary-General, having assumed charge on March 3, 2014.[3]

Overview

Secretariat of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation in Kathmandu, Nepal

Residence

The SAARC Secretariat is based in Kathmandu, Nepal. It coordinates and monitors the implementation of activities, hosts meetings, and serves as a channel of communication between the Association and its member states as well as other regional organisations.[1]

The Secretary-General is assisted by eight Directors on deputation from the member states, and the SAARC Secretariat includes officials from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.[1]

Regional Centres

The SAARC Secretariat is supported by the following regional centres established in member states to promote regional co-operation. These centres are managed by governing boards composed of representatives from all the member states, the SAARC Secretariat and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Host Government. The Director of the Centre acts as Member Secretary to the Governing Board which reports to the Programming Committee.

  • SAARC Agricultural Centre (SAC), Dhaka, Bangladesh
  • SAARC Meteorological Research Centre (SMRC), Dhaka, Bangladesh
  • SAARC Tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS Centre (STAC), Kathmandu, Nepal
  • SAARC Documentation Centre (SDC), New Delhi, India
  • SAARC Human Resources Development Centre (SHRDC), Islamabad, Pakistan
  • SAARC Coastal Zone Management Centre (SCZMC), Maldives
  • SAARC Information Centre (SIC), Nepal
  • SAARC Energy Centre (SEC), Pakistan
  • SAARC Disaster Management Centre (SDMC), India
  • SAARC Development Fund(SDF), Bhutan
  • SAARC Forestry Centre (SFC), Bhutan
  • SAARC Cultural Centre (SCC), Sri Lanka[4]

History

There have been twelve democratically elected holders of the office of Secretary-General of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).[1] Bangladesh held the first summit in Dhaka, where the Bangladeshi diplomat, Abul Ahsan was elected its first Secretary-General. Since then, eleven more General Secretaries have been selected from each member nation, so far with the exception of Afghanistan.[1] The Nepalese diplomat, Arjun Bahadur Thapa, is the current and incumbent Secretary-General having been appointed to his post on 31 March 2014.[1]

Secretaries General of the SAARC

List of appointees to Secretary-General of the SAARC
Secretary–Generals Portrait Dates in Office State of Origin Notes
Abul Ahsan 16 January 1985 – 15 October 1989  Bangladesh Served as Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh , the UNESCO , and the OIC.
K.Kishore Bhargava 17 October 1989 – 31 December 1991  India Emirate to Canada in 1998.
Ibrahim Zaki 1 January 1992 – 31 December 1993 Maldives Maldives Continuation of ministerial appointments in the Maldives government until 2003.
Yadah K. Silwal 1 January 1994 – 31 December 1995 Nepal Nepal Served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Naeem Hasan 1 January 1996 – 31 December 1998  Pakistan Served as Pakistan Ambassador to Sweden until 2001.
Nihal Rodrigo 1 January 1999 – 10 January 2002 Sri Lanka Sri Lanka
Q.A. Rahim 11 January 2002 – 28 February 2005  Bangladesh
Chenkyab Dorji 1 March 2005 – 29 February 2008  Bhutan Continuation of appointments at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bhutan.
Sheel Sharma 1 March 2008 – 28 February 2011  India Served in the Indian DAE , the AECI and as the Permanent Representative to the IAEA.
Fathimath Saeed 1 March 2011 – 11 March 2012 Maldives Maldives Resigned from the post in 2012.
Ahmed Saleem 12 March 2012 — 28 February 2014 Maldives Maldives
Arjun Bahadur Thapa 1 March 2014 — present Nepal Nepal Former Foreign Secretary of Nepal

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g SAARC Secy. Gen. "Secretary General of SAARC". SAARC. SAARC Secy. Gen. Retrieved 17 November 2013.
  2. ^ SAARC Summit. "SAARC". SAARC Summit. Retrieved 10 November 2013.
  3. ^ "Nepal's Arjun Bahadur Thapa is SAARC's new Secretary General". IANS. news.biharprabha.com. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  4. ^ http://www.saarc-sec.org/Regional-Centers/12/
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