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People’s SAARC is a broad-based regional civil society platform initiative and its major activities are organized parallel to the official SAARC Summits

It provides a platform where issues of country specific as well as regional interests are shared, debated and mutually reinforced through strategic alliance building for fighting the common enemies, i.e., poverty, hunger, denial of human rights, exclusion, marginalisation and vulnerability. The People’s SAARC Secretariat is hosted by Rural Reconstruction Nepal (RRN) in Kathmandu.

Introduction:

Civil society (people’s movements and NGOs) have been working together for some time to forge a people to people forum in the SAARC region and to enable non-government voices to come together at the regional level. In 1994, a meeting was held in Kathmandu to discuss ways to foster cooperation, solidarity and action at the people-to-people level in a fragmented South Asia. The South Asian Forum on Human Rights (SAFHR) hosted the meeting, and participants drafted an 18-point Statement of Concerns, which was handed over to the SAARC Secretary General.

The following year, a consultation on the “Alternative Agenda for South Asian People’s Solidarity” jointly organised by INSAF, INSEC, PILER and PP21 (People’s Plan for the 21st century) was held in New Delhi. Participants sought an alternative agenda for a People’s SAARC to address the concerns and aspirations of the people, reflecting the struggle for empowerment, livelihood and dignity of the South Asian people as a whole. This meeting produced a 14-point agenda for action. In 1996, the 1st SAARC People’s Forum was held, and lobbied the official SAARC meeting on the issue of trafficking. This led to an acknowledgement at the 9th SAARC summit that trafficking is a grave concern for the region, and a commitment to develop a convention on the trafficking of women and children. The 2nd SAARC People’s Forum further lobbied to change the text of the draft convention, and thereby impact on the policy framework of SAARC.

Primary Objectives:

Its main objectives are to promote people-friendly and people governing regionalism and to consolidate, galvanise and voice people’s issues and problems so that the governments of the region working as SAARC block are forced to hear and respond positively. In this process, civil society groups and movements in their respective countries identify and prioritise their issues, and share these with their national governments and the SAARC process.

Specific Goals

People's SAARC focuses on range of goals to achieve

Goal #1

To promote a political environment in South Asia free from exploitation and oppression, highlighting efforts for inclusive and accountable democracy.

Goal #2

To promote the welfare of the peoples of South Asia and to improve their quality of life.

Goal #3

To accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development in the region and to provide all individuals the opportunity to live in dignity and to realize their full potentials.

Our Network

We are working with various organizations

We work with many different organizations to achieve our goals. By teaming up, we combine our strengths and resources to innovate and create solutions that make a positive impact.

By working closely with these organizations, we aim to create meaningful impacts and contribute to the advancement of our shared missions and visions.