Although economic linkages between South Asia and Southeast Asia have been strengthened over the past decade, integration between these two regions remains limited. Can new approaches to regional integration help revitalize trade and economic links between South Asia and Southeast Asia This...

"The authors examine the economic case for the South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA) Agreement signed on January 6, 2004 by India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives. They start with a detailed analysis of the preferential trading arrangements in South Asia to look at...

"In 1995 the seven South Asian countries--Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka--initiated a multilateral framework for regionwide integration under the South Asian Preferential Trade Agreement (SAPTA). In a recent initiative, members agreed that SAPTA would...

The study analyzes the SE landscape and related ecosystem of seven SAARC countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The scope of this study is limited to three sectors that are significant for SEs: (a) Agri-business, (b) Healthcare and (c) Renewable...

Economic Consulting Associates (ECA) and Cambridge Economic Policy Associates (CEPA) have been engaged by Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP) and the World Bank to prepare a policy paper for enhanced regional electricity trade involving the Economic Cooperation Council (ECO)...

"South Asia has attracted global attention because it has experienced rapid GDP growth over the last two decades. What is not so well known is that South Asia is the least integrated region in the world. South Asia has opened its door to the rest of the world but it remains closed to its...

This study provides a comprehensive comparative analysis of the business environment in six South Asian countries, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, to examine whether business regulatory requirements in these countries hinder them from fully benefiting from BRI...

South Asia remains the fastest growing region in the world. With a strong performance in the eastern part of the region - in particular in Bhutan, Bangladesh and India - the region defied disappointing world growth in 2016. Inflation slowed down in the second half of 2016, mainly due to lower...

Global recovery remains below expectations and uneven across major advanced economies. Monetary tightening in a recovering US economy and potential deflation in a weak Eurozone constitute sources of risk for developing and emerging market economies. Nonetheless, developing country growth remains...

The report envisages significant, medium-term benefits for Afghanistan and its neighbors from trade policy liberalization, from country-by-country reforms in trade logistics, and, especially within Afghanistan, from road rehabilitation and building a commercially-oriented enabling environment...