Trade and market integration

Though South Asia has been making steady progress on most indicators of regional economic integration, the pace of change has been slow. Though growth rates have fluctuated since the onset of the financial crisis in 2008, South Asian economies have been resilient in the face of the global crisis and have managed to diversify their exports to some extent. While South Asia has improved its internal economic integration, the subregion is still a long way from catching up with the higher levels of integration achieved by neighbouring subregions of East and South-East Asia. Lower levels of integration signified by relatively low volumes of intraregional trade and greater challenges in terms of regulatory preparedness for liberalization of regional trade and investment mean that the subregion must prioritize and accelerate its reforms for economic integration to harness its potential in a meaningful way.

Sustainable Development Goals:

Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions