SAARC Declaration

The Dhaka Declaration of the Thirteenth SAARC Summit dated 13th November 2005 has included Water and Sanitation sector as one of its priorities, as depicted in following paragraphs:

Priority to Sanitation:

Para 31: "The Heads of State of Government agreed to launch a regional initiative with regard to basic healthcare services and sanitation in the rural areas and encouraged exchange of experience and best practices within the region....."


Priority to Water Conservations and Arsenic Mitigation:

Para 36: “The Heads of State of Government underlined the need for collaborative action in the area of environment, including water conservation, to promote sustainable development....They also agreed to address the problem of arsenic contamination of ground water and assistance to affected peoples."

Finding Mechanism for SAARC Declarations:

Para 11: “The Heads of State of Government decided to establish a SAARC Poverty Alleviation Fund (SPAF) with contribution both voluntary and/or, assessed, as may be agreed. They called upon the Finance Ministers to formulate recommendations on the operational modalities of the Fund, taking into consideration the outcome of the Meeting of Financial experts. In this regard, they welcomed the offer of Pakistan to host the next meeting of the Finance Ministers. The operational modalities of the SPAF shall be decided by the Finance/Planning Ministers. They agreed that the SPAF shall function within the SADF to be reconstituted, as SAARC Development Fund (SDF), to serve as the umbrella financial institution for all SAARC projects and programmes and comprise three Windows namely Social Window, Infrastructure Window and Economic Window with a Permanent Secretariat.”