In April 2025, Thailand, the current chair, hosted the 6th Summit of the Heads of State/Government of the member States of BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) was held in Bangkok under the theme “Prosperous, Resilient, and Open BIMSTEC” (PRO BIMSTEC). The summit was chaired by Thailand Prime Minister(PM) Paetongtarn Shinawatra.
- It focused on strengthening collaboration among the 7 member States, namely Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar (formerly Burma), Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.
- The summit was attended by the Heads of State/Government of the member States to address their shared security and developmental challenges through institutional reform, strategic cooperation, and sustainable development.
Key People:
i.Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi represented India at the 6th BIMSTEC Summit.
ii.Professor Muhammad Yunus, Chief Adviser (CA) of Bangladesh; Dasho Tshering Tobgay, PM of Bhutan; Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Chairman of State Administration Council (SAC), and PM of Myanmar; KP Sharma Oli, PM of Nepal; Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, PM of Sri Lanka; and Ms. Paetongtarn Shinawatra, PM of Thailand were also participtaed in the summit.
Highlights of 6th BIMSTEC Summit:
i.This Summit marks the first in-person Summit in 7 years (since the last in-person gathering in 2018 in Nepal).
ii.The Summit followed the 25th Session of the BIMSTEC Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) and the 20th Session of Ministerial Meeting (MM) of the BIMSTEC on 3 April 2025 in Bangkok.
iii.Since its inception in June 1997, BIMSTEC has held 5 summits in Bangkok in 2004, New Delhi (Delhi) in 2008, Nay Pyi Taw (Myanmar) in 2014, Kathmandu (Nepal) in 2018, and Colombo(Sri Lanka) in 2022.
Key Outcomes of the Summit:
i.Adoption of the Summit Declaration reflecting the leaders’ vision and directives.
ii.Launch of the BIMSTEC Bangkok Vision 2030, the first-ever vision document of BIMSTEC that outlines a strategic plan to build a “PRO BIMSTEC” by 2030.
- It provides a comprehensive roadmap for regional cooperation amongst the member States.
iii.Signing of Agreement on Maritime Transport Cooperation (AMTC) to boost regional maritime connectivity.
- The Foreign/External Affairs Ministers (EAMs) from the member states of BIMSTEC signed the BIMSTEC Agreement on Maritime Transport Cooperation (AMTC) on the sidelines of the 20th BIMSTEC MM in Bangkok.
- It provides for national treatment and assistance to vessels, crew, and cargo; mutual recognition of certificates or documents; Joint Shipping Coordination Committee; and dispute settlement mechanism.
iv.Signing of Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) between BIMSTEC and Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA); and BIMSTEC and United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), formalizing partnerships in areas of mutual interest.
v.Adoption of Rules of Procedure for the BIMSTEC mechanisms, enhancing institutional efficiency and consistency.
vi.Adoption of the Report of Eminent Persons Group on the future reforms and revitalization.
vii.Endorsement of BIMSTEC Leaders’ Joint Statement on the impact of the earthquake on 28 March 2025 in Myanmar and Thailand.
India-Led Initiatives at the Summit:
During the event, PM Narendra Modi proposed a 21-point action plan at the BIMSTEC summit, aiming to enhance engagement and cooperation among member nations and focusing on areas like athletics, disaster management, and capacity building.
1.Business and Trade:
- Establishment of the BIMSTEC Chamber of Commerce
- Organisation of annual BIMSTEC Business Summit
- Feasibility study on trade in local currencies
2.Digital and Information Technology (IT) Cooperation:
- Pilot study on Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) needs
- Efforts to link the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) with BIMSTEC payment systems
3.Disaster Management:
- Establishment of BIMSTEC Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Disaster Management in India
- Hosting of the 4th joint exercises (BIMSTEC DMEx) between BIMSTEC Disaster Management Authorities in India in 2025.
4.Security: India to host the first Home Ministers’ Mechanism meeting in 2025.
5.Space Cooperation: Setting up ground stations for training, Nano Satellite development, and remote sensing data use.
6.Capacity Building and Training:
i.Launch of “BIMSTEC for Organised Development of Human Resource Infrastructure” (BODHI) to train 300 youths annually in India
ii.Scholarships to BIMSTEC students in the Forestry Research Institute (FRI) of India and expansion of the scholarship scheme at Nalanda University, Bihar.
iii.Annual young diplomats training programme
iv.Tata Memorial Centre (TMC) support for cancer care training
v.The CoE for traditional medicine and agriculture knowledge exchange.
- The CoE for traditional medicine aims to promote research and dissemination of traditional medicine across BIMSTEC countries.
- India and Thailand share robust traditional medicine systems and have ongoing academic and research cooperation.
7.Energy Cooperation: Operationalisation of BIMSTEC Energy Centre in Bengaluru, Karnataka and acceleration of electric grid interconnection.
8.Youth Engagement and Innovation:
- Hosting of the BIMSTEC Young Leaders’ Summit in 2025
- Launch of Hackathon and Young Professional Visitors Programme
9.Sports Initiatives: BIMSTEC Athletics Meet in India (2025); Hosting of the first BIMSTEC Games in 2027 on BIMSTEC’s 30th anniversary.
10.Cultural Exchange: BIMSTEC Traditional Music Festival to be held in India in 2025.
11.Connectivity: Establishment of Sustainable Maritime Transport (SMarT) Centre in India for capacity building, research, innovation, maritime policies, and policy coordination.
- This Centre will also catalyze enhancing cooperation in maritime security across the region.
A Symbolic Gesture:
i.Muhammad Yunus, CA of Bangladesh, met Indian PM Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the 6th BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok.
ii.During the Summit, Yunus gifted Modi a framed photograph taken on January 3, 2015, during the 102nd Indian Science Congress (ISC) in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
Next chairmanship:
i.At the end of the Summit, Bangladesh, a founding member of BIMSTEC, assumed the Chairmanship of BIMSTEC for a 2-year term.
ii.The leadership was handed over by Paetongtarn Shinawatra, PM of Thailand, to Muhammad Yunus, Chief Adviser (CA) of the Interim Government of Bangladesh.
About the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC):
Secretary General (SG)- Ambassador Indra Mani Pandey (India)
Secretariat– Dhaka, Bangladesh
Established– 1997
Member States– 7
