Question

Who is the present chairman of the SAARC?

Answer 1

Hint: SAARC which stands for South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation is a regional multi-government organisation in South Asia with member states Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. After initial concerns for a regional organisation in South Asia were brought up in 1980, the foreign secretaries of the seven founding members (current members except for Afghanistan) met in Columbo, Sri Lanka in 1981. The Declaration on SAARC was officially adopted in New Delhi in the year 1983 and launched the Integrated Program of Action in five agreed-upon subjects of regional cooperation—agriculture, rural development, telecommunication, meteorology, health and population activities. Other areas were added to the IPA later which included transport, postal services, scientific and technological cooperation, sports, arts, and culture. In 2005, Afghanistan became the newest member of SAARC.

Complete answer: The SAARC Secretariat was established in Kathmandu, Nepal in 1987. The Secretariat consists of the secretary-general, seven directors, and the general services staff. The Secretary-General serves for a term of 3 years. The current Secretary-General of SAARC is Esala Ruwan Weerakoon, a Sri-Lankan diplomat who assumed the office on March 1, 2020, who succeeded Amjad Hussain Sial of Pakistan. The country that hosts the SAARC summits assumes the role of chair for that meeting. The last summit (19th summit) of SAARC took place in Islamabad, Pakistan in 2016.

Note: Apart from the eight member-states, the SAARC also has observers which include Australia, China, Japan, Mauritius, Myanmar, the European Union, South Korea, the USA and Iran.