KATHMANDU, NEPAL: The 41st Session of SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) Standing Committee started in Kathmandu, Nepal on Sunday morning.

Foreign Secretary Md Shahidul Haque is leading the Bangladesh delegations while foreign secretaries from other SAARC member countries led their respective delegations in the meeting. 

As per the SAARC practice, the Meeting was opened by Ali Naseer Mohamed, Chair of the Standing Committee and the leader of the Delegation from the Maldives.

Acting Foreign Secretary and the leader of the Nepali delegation, Shanker Das Bairagi, was elected Chairman of the Committee.

The two-day Meeting with a long agenda will delve in to the matters, including Secretary General's periodic analytical report, country reports on SAARC activities, the reports of the Programming Committee, report of the 2nd Meeting of SAARC Cabinet Secretaries, economic and financial cooperation, and SAARC Development Fund.

The other issues in focus are- poverty alleviation, information and communications technology, transport, energy, agriculture, rural development and food security, environment, climate change and natural disaster, bio-technology, social development, health and population; terrorism, legal matters and narcotic drugs, education, SAARC Apex and Recognized Bodies, cooperation with intergovernmental and other organizations, strengthening of SAARC mechanisms, etc.

The Meeting will submit its report to the SAARC Council of Ministers, being held in Kathmandu on November 25.

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BDST: 1318 HRS, NOV 23, 2014