Differences between EU and SAARC is at the institutional level

Bianca Schnober is a student of Political Science at the Otto-Friedrich University, Germany. Her main topic in political science is the study of International Relations and Regional Cooperation as well.

Bianca stayed in Kathmandu well over ten weeks or so as an Intern at the Nepal Office of the Friederic Ebert Stiftung. During her stay in Kathmandu, she engaged herself in studying the SAARC process initiated by the South Asian nations some two decades back. In the process, she met with some noted academicians and the SAARC experts here. Now with some knowledge of the SAARC regional body at hand, we approached her to share her views to our valued readers as regards the functioning of the European Union and the South Asian regional body and also on the prospects of expansion of the cooperation between the two regional bodies for the benefit of the people of their respective regions.

Prior to leaving for a trek to Langtang, she spoke to us at our office in Dillibazar. Follow the results: Ed.

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TGQ1: What brings you Bianca this time to Kathmandu? Had you some academic business here? Tell us your mission or say purpose of your visit to Kathmandu? Your opinions please!

Bianca: I'm a student of political science in Germany. In this respect, I was working as an intern at the office of FES (Friedrich Ebert Stiftung) Nepal during the last weeks where I could follow a research about regional cooperation in South Asia.

Being interested in politics and economics in South Asia you can easily get a lot of materials. The SAARC headquarters is located here in Kathmandu. That was an added advantage for me.

Regional cooperation-linked problems and prospects are being discussed in numerous papers, seminars and conferences. However, academia and policy community don't share the same opinion about how to resolve regional challenges. Majority of them are aware of current challenges faced by the regional peoples and States but there is a lack of effective collective action backed by strong political will. Basically I came to Kathmandu to get more insight about the regional cooperation and its functioning. Beside this, I also had good opportunity to travel a lot in rural Nepal and discuss with people on the spot about the country’s situation.

TGQ2: During your Kathmandu tenure, what you could find about the prospect of regional cooperation in South Asia whose Secretariat is in Kathmandu?

Is SAARC equally good as the European Union?

Bianca: I can understand, that a comparison of SAARC and EU sounds attractive anyway. But the evolution of European Union differs in some major background conditions: First of all, the EU is not only a forum for socio-economic exchange. It also provides window of opportunity for a political partnership of European States which came into practice after a long process of social learning. The original idea of a trade union could also be realized because of the awareness that the European States belonged to the same region, whereas it seems that it's still a long way to create a strong awareness such as a South Asian identity although tourism, film festivals, youth exchange, and multi-track conferences and social dialogues are trying to foster it. The important factor for economic exchange in Europe, however, was that the gap between the national economies of the member-states of the EU was not as large as in South Asia and regional integration was easier to realize.

The intra-regional exchange amounts less than 5 % in South Asia, the heterogeneity between the South Asian states is therefore demanding a lot of conceptual and structural adjustment to foster economic integration. A deeper level of economic integration can promote a culture of peace. The difference between EU and SAARC, I think, is at the institutional level. For example, the SAARC Secretary General has no own institutional resources, think tanks and experts to do job at the regional level. It is also significant that the SAARC Charter is not comparable with the binding agreements of European member-states, which make efforts even for a common foreign and security policy.

What I found during my talks with academicians here is that South Asian region is having many problems. There  remain many issues bilaterally to be resolved which is why the SAARC process has not gained required momentum as it should have been in two decades of being in existence. As well, crucial political questions about security, energy and infrastructure building have been excluded in general. The prospect is there but what is demanding is that countries in the SAARC must put their efforts together to expand their economies.

Furthermore, regional cooperation is not only important for economic reasons, but also to bring a stabilizing factor in a region which has faced numerous political confrontations in the past. And moreover, socio-economic problems in South Asia can't be solved by each single state but regional cooperation can help to deal with problems such as poverty, health, illiteracy, climate change and protection of the environment.

TGQ3: Do you see the need of the EU and SAARC coming together in the larger interests of the people residing in both the region? Your comments please!

Bianca: The EU has already an observer status within SAARC since 2006 and there is in fact an exchange of information going on in between these two regional bodies. The SAARC can certainly benefit from the EU experiences, but it depends on the nations of the SAARC as to how much they are willing to expand relations with the EU in an effective manner. The EU has strong interest in extending cooperation in cultural exchange, economic cooperation, social development, environment management, disarmament and peace.

TGQ4: You said that you are a student of political science in Germany. If so then tell our readers as to how you assessed the Nepali political situation? Your personal comments please!

Bianca: In my opinion, the political situation can not be understood without a detailed knowledge of the society, history and the relations with neighboring States. The situation is changing every day and for foreigners it's sometimes hard to follow the dynamics of the emerging politics. The present discussions about the constitution will hopefully come to a good end which results in a stable system and that people will benefit.

There is a need for enhancing the level of security and law and order so that climate for business and investment becomes conducive. As an outside observer I wish the people of Nepal will remain in peace and prosperity after a decade long conflict. The post-conflict peace building measures should be pushed vigorously.

I see international community is willing to support in this area.

TGQ5: Have you any further plans in Nepal? Germans love going for a trek. Do you have any such plans? Finally, how you liked Nepal during your ten weeks stay in Nepal?

Bianca: After enjoying the beautiful Langtang-Trek, I'm planning to do some trekking in the Solu Khumbu-region. What I enjoyed most during my trips in Nepal was the contact to very friendly, open-minded locals in the villages since I learned a little bit of Nepali. I have tried to discover Nepal outside of Kathmandu and you'll have certainly a good time. I'm already planning to come back.

Posted on : 2008-11-26 07:12:41

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