SAARC Member Research Articles

Effect of the Human Development Index on Mobile Telephony Diffusion: Evidence from SAARC Member Countries

Effect of the Human Development Index on Mobile Telephony Diffusion: Evidence from SAARC Member Countries

Playing catch up – privacy regimes in South Asia

ABSTRACT This article is an attempt to examine the growing consolidation and harmonisation of privacy and surveillance laws in the major SAARC member nations, as well as to take stock of South Asia’s emerging privacy jurisprudence. Driven by reactions to increasingly frequent data collection and profiling attempts by the government, as well as the side effects of growing digital markets, the privacy discourse in South Asia is evolving with a heightened awareness of privacy as a core fundamental right. At the same time, some governments in the region are also keen to explore the benefits of the digital economy, and are increasingly developing economic policies that focus on the use of data as a ‘resource’ for the State and the industry. Apart from outlining these developments, the article delves into and identifies the source of privacy rights in these countries, whether derived from the constitutions of the respective countries or otherwise provided for through specific legislation. The article traces and examines the legal architectures of privacy and surveillance in the region, including national profiling databases. It then zooms out to pinpoint possible trends and influences.

Is Capital Market Integration among the SAARC Countries Feasible? An Empirical Study

This paper aims to verify the feasibility of capital market integration among the SAARC member countries by analyzing the reaction of volatility towards the changes in economic, political, and financial factors by taking five particular SAARC countries as a sample. In order to achieve this objective, Gross Domestic Product Per Capita, Political Stability Index, Stock Market Value, Corporate Information Disclosure Index, and DGEN of Bangladesh, Sensex of India, NEPSE of Nepal, KSE100 of Pakistan, and CSE All Shares of Sri Lanka from 2003 to 2018 have been considered. All the data have been found stationary at the first difference. Pedroni, Kao, and Johansen's tests indicate the existence of cointegration among the factors. Panel Vector Error Correction Model observes both long-run and short-run impacts of selected factors on the volatility, thus confirms the possibility of capital market integration among the sample countries. The study strongly recommends market integration as it will increase market competition, reduce financial services costs, small companies can enjoy equity financing, and large companies can enjoy economies of scale. Theoutcome of this study enriches the international finance literature with a special focus on the regional economic bloc.

A Gravity Model Approach towards Pakistan’s Bilateral Trade with SAARC Countries

This research paper attempts to estimate the bilateral trade of Pakistan with SAARC countries using a gravity model of trade. This panel study covers the period from 2003 to 2016. The empirical results are obtained through pooled OLS, fixed‑effects, and random‑effects estimators. On the basis of Hausman test results, the paper concentrates only on the findings of the fixed‑effects model. The empirical findings reveal that the GDPs of both Pakistan and the partner country have a positive impact on bilateral trade. Market size has a negative impact on trade and this is justified on the basis of the absorption effect. Similarly, distance and exchange rate also have a negative correlation with bilateral trade. The study finds that Pakistan has very low trade with India and Afghanistan, despite the common border. A common language has a positive but insignificant impact on Pakistan’s bilateral trade. The Paper also attempts to calculate the trade potential of Pakistan. The findings reveal that Pakistan has high trade potential with all SAARC member countries except the Maldives and Afghanistan.

Gender Inequality: A Comparison of India and Other SAARC Member Countries

Gender Inequality: A Comparison of India and Other SAARC Member Countries

India's agricultural trade relationship with SAARC countries

India ’agricultural trade with SAARC member countries was not very impressive as a percentage of its world agricultural trade. The agricultural exports from India to other SAARC countries increased from $1553.61 million in 2005–06 to $5475.26 million in 2014–15. A similar increase occurred in agricultural imports of India from $634.74 million to $1266.88 million. India's agricultural exports to other SAARC countries were higher as compared to imports, thus the balance of trade was favourable to India except for Afghanistan (2006–15) and Bhutan (2007 and 2008). The compound growth rate of agricultural exports of India with SAARC as a whole came out to be 14.26 per cent per annum at current prices and 7.84 per cent at constant prices which indicated a tremendous increase in agricultural exports to these countries after SAFTA agreement. The agricultural growth in imports at constant prices was negative and non-significant for all SAARC member countries with India except for Afghanistan and Bangladesh which were the major importing countries with respect to agricultural trade. After SAFTA agreement in 2006, no doubt, trade increased in the SAARC region, but lack of proper implementation was observed among SAARC countries. The study suggested that as India's total agricultural trade multiplied more than three-times after the formation of SAFTA in the region, it should play a key role in the implementation of SAFTA.

India’s Neighbourhood Policy :

The paper analyzes India’s policy towards its immediate neighbourhood and tries to draw relevant inferences from India‘s recent efforts to build peace in South Asia. In this study, India’s immediate neighbourhood refers to SAARC member states and Prime Minster Narendra Modi’s foreign policy laid strong emphasis on ‘neighbourhood first’ policy that prioritizes strengthening India’s relations with its immediate neighbours . This paper traces the evolution of India’s neighbourhood policies over the years and studies the approaches adopted by different leaders. The renewed impetus towards India’s neighbourhood in the region under the Narendra Modi led government has been discussed in detail. It is argued that India’s recent neighbourhood practices such as strengthening bilateral ties, diplomatic engagements, sub-regionalism, elements of continuity or change and their applicability to establishing peace in the region has made a great impact in the region. The complex regional dynamics, seen notably in India’s relations with Nepal and Pakistan that serve as roadblocks in implementing a coherent neighbourhood policy, are teased out. The paper puts forth newer prospects of integration and offers a set of recommendations for sustained engagement between India and its neighbours in order to build peace in the region.

Significance of Good Governance for FDI Inflows in SAARC Countries

This paper studies the importance of good governance for FDI inflows in SAARC member countries for the time period of nine years, i.e. from 2006 to 2014. The worldwide governance indicators of Kaufmann, Kraay, and Zoido-Lobaton (1999) are used to investigate the impact of good governance on FDI inflows. Through random effects panel estimation technique, the results show that political stability and regulatory quality significantly and positively affect inward FDI. On the contrary, prevalence of corruption discourages multinationals to invest in SAARC countries. Moreover, conventional FDI location determinants like market size and development level continue to exert their positive influence. However, openness of the host economy and human capital, though equally important, are insignificant in terms of their possible sway on FDI inflows. The key finding is that good governance has significant impact on inward FDI in the SAARC region

Challenges to Regional Services Integration in South Asia

Regional integration in services in South Asia holds considerable potential across many services. This article highlights the scope for and potential benefits from regional integration of services in this region and the many sectoral as well as cross-cutting challenges to this process. The article argues that there are regulatory, infrastructural, institutional and business environment related constraints in the SAARC member countries, which impede regional services integration. There are also political economy challenges which prevent progress on critical cross-cutting issues such as intraregional mobility of service providers and investment. The article argues for a broad-based, flexible regional services agreement, which takes a progressive approach to services integration alongside regional efforts to address issues of investment, regulatory harmonization, labour mobility and connectivity, national efforts to address issues of regulatory, institutional, infrastructural and human resource capacity and a favourable policy orientation and mindset at the individual country level.

Stimulating Intra-regional Investment in SAARC

Whilst unilateral liberalization of FDI policy regimes in South Asia have made significant headway and contributed to increased FDI inflows, as a region South Asia’s success in attracting FDI, compared to other more successful trading blocs remains limited. Notably, intra-regional investment volumes remain minuscule in comparison to the already dismal level of intra-regional trade. Despite a lapse of over a decade after the implementation of SAFTA, the recent past has witnessed renewed interest in a regional investment agreement in SAARC. This article evaluates how useful a regional investment framework would be for the SAARC. The article argues that whilst a regional investment framework is critical in spurring both intra- and extra-regional FDI, it is by no means the only determinant in attracting FDI. As the experience in ASEAN suggests, in addition to a regional framework, at the country level, each SAARC member state must strive to undertake broad-based reforms to improve their individual country investment climate if they aspire to attract greater volumes of both intra- and extra-regional FDI to support its trade expansion. The article also goes on to draw lessons and best practice from the ASEAN Investment Agreement in going about designing and implementing a Regional Investment Agreement in SAARC.

Perils of Power Purchase: Electricity Imports in the Changing Milieu

In an attempt to mitigate pressing power shortages, Pakistan is pursuing proposals and projects aimed at import of electricity from CARs, India and other SAARC member states, Iran and China. However, the nature of relations between Pakistan and the countries involved, as well as disputes over sources of power to be imported, solicit caution, for strategic reasons. Besides, considering the changing scenario where a sizeable number of medium to large sized projects are being initiated in the wake of China's mega scale entry on Pakistan's power generation horizon, Islamabad's electricity import options need reevaluation and reconsideration. Projects such as CASA-1000 and import from India have become less relevant, for the time being at least, while import from Iran and China may be reanalyzed in the evolving milieu and thus implemented, accordingly.

Aftercare and Institutionalised Children: A Literature Review of International Best Practices and Lessons for SAARC Countries

Aftercare programming is increasingly recognized as a key factor in successful transitions for institutionalized children to interdependent living. Successful Aftercare programs seek to increase key capacities in institutionalized children while providing the necessary duration of time for healthy transitions out of institutionalized care. Life skills, education and employment attainment, attachment, and permanency are all key program focuses developed between the age of majority (18) and discharge from programs. The challenge faced by Aftercare systems and programs is the continued provision of services to young adults within frameworks that seek to create immediate transitions at the age of 18 years. Young adults around the world are transitioning out of traditional familial support networks at an average age of 24 years, with connectivity to permanent supports, while young adults leaving care are expected to achieve immediate independence at the expiry of government mandates for involvement. This paper provides a literature review of international best practices in Aftercare along with a comparative analysis at program successes and gaps within SAARC member countries. This will be achieved through the use of peer-reviewed research, and individual program reviews of successful Aftercare programs.

Does the Inflow of FDI Stock Matter? Evidence from SAARC Countries

This paper examines the influence of foreign direct investment (FDI) on economic growth in five SAARC member countries – Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Using time series data from 1990 to 2010, an empirical model is estimated in which growth of real GDP depends on FDI, investment, openness, tax policy and inflation. After establishing the stationarity of the data series, cointegration tests are performed, and an error correction model is developed and estimated. The empirical results indicate that, unlike investment and openness to international trade, FDI has not played a significant role in promoting economic growth in these countries. We conclude that the effectiveness of FDI may depend in part on the size of the inflows, as well as the level of economic development.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES: A CASE STUDY OF SOUTH ASIAN COUNTRIES

Purpose: The central point of this study was to demonstrate the similarity and difference of Human Resource Management (HRM) practices amongst the countries in South Asia. Through this paper, an in-depth study was undertaken to evaluate the validity of existing HRM practices in South Asian (SA) countries. An effort was made to examine the influences from the economic emergence in South Asia, force of colonization, historical panorama, cultural similarities and dissimilarities, legal, economic and political factors causing the change. Methodology/Sampling: The study is based on secondary data collected through extensive research on present and past literature available on the topic. Findings: HRM is in a reforming process towards the development of organizational transformation in South Asia. In addition, contextual and contingency factors are determining the outcome of restructuring HRM practices in South Asia, identified as FDI, foreign MNCs’ influence, and bilateral relations amongst the SAARC members. Practical Implications: Due to cultural impediments, organizations are finding it difficult to implement modern HRM practices in true letter and spirit. This study may draw some lessons for development and collaboration of novel opportunity of SAARC industries’ HRM practices in South Asia.

K‐economy in the SAARC integration: a comparative study among the member countries

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine and compare the indicators of k‐economy to assess whether their status of development helps to improve such indicators in the SAARC. Furthermore, the study also aims to create linkage among the indicators of k‐economy, economic integration process in the SAARC, and the knowledge conversion model.Design/methodology/approachThe paper adopts comparative analyses of the indicators of k‐economy. Indicators are considered under three tracks such as: socio‐economic, economic and ICT infrastructure. Socio‐economic indicators – poverty index, literacy rate, public expenditure on education, R&D expenditure, enrolment of tertiary education, number of researchers in R&D, participation in international agency. Economic indicators – per‐capita real GDP, real GDP growth rate, share of GDP by sector, structure of trade, inflation and unemployment rate. ICT infrastructure indicators – telephone main lines per 100 people, cellular users per 100 people, broadband per 100 people, and internet users per 100 people. The data are obtained from publications, existing reports and web sites of international organizations.FindingsThe indicators of k‐economy demonstrate deprived developmental status with increasing trends in the SAARC member countries. As a result, SAARC demonstrates poor growth in terms of knowledge development as compared to other economic integrations in Asia such as APT. There is a considerable variation in most of the indicators among the member states as measured by CV (coefficient of variation) although they lay in low‐income county status. The people of the SAARC countries like to adopt with the ICT easily if the opportunity is provided. The study revealed that the countries in the SAARC should carefully follow the knowledge creation, conversion, implementation and reverse follow‐up process to meet specific indicator based needs of the specific sector of particular members considering their social and financial affordability in the local context.Research limitations/implicationsThe study does not use the same year's data for all the indicators applied in this paper due to lack of data availability.Practical implicationsThe findings of this paper will be useful to formulate effective policies to improve the indicators of k‐economy in the SAARC. This will be influential for the SAARC to be a competitive integration.Originality/valueThis study provides comparative empirical evidence of variation in the indicators of k‐economy among the SAARC member countries contribute to improve such indicators. The paper also creates linkage among the indicators of k‐economy, economic integration process in the SAARC, and the knowledge conversion model.

Is SAFTA a Myth or Reality?

The concept of Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) is the out come of Uruguay Round. Since then, the different regions had created regional trading block. Recognizing the role of trade and investment flows in the process of regional economic integration, a trade block among SAARC members was created April 1993 known as SAPTA. Later on SAARC region was declared as Free Trade Area (FTA) and accordingly, SAFTA was formed on January 1, 2006. Keeping in mind the flow of trade among SAARC countries, it appears that the spirit behind its creation has been defeated and it is a myth not a reality. The present paper reviews the emerging trends of trade among SAARC countries and suggests how SAFTA could prove to be a reality.

An Approach of ICT Oriented Learning Pedagogies for Development of SAARC economies

The rapid development of information and communication technologies(ICTs) and the move towards more knowledge-intensive, interdependent and internationalized societies create new challenges and opportunities for the design and delivery of educationICT is transforming the global economy and creating new networks that cross cultures as well as minimize distances opening up new horizons for progress and exchange of creativity and intercultural dialogue. The emergence of the Internet and rapid diffusion of digital platforms such as the World-Wide-Web, mobile telephony and broadband networks has had and will increasingly have radical effect on the transformation of education and training in all sectors demonstrating how pervasive ICT has become with various implications on economic growth at macro and national levels However growing digital divide in terms of access, applicability and affordability is actually leading to greater inequalities in development of not only developed and developing nations but among developing nations with spatial heterogeneity with particular reference to SAARC member nations.. Nevertheless the growing digital divide is actually leading to greater inequalities in development giving rise to paradoxical situations where those who have the greatest need of them- disadvantaged groups, rural communities, illiterate populations or even entire countries- do not have access to the tools which would enable them to become full-fledged members of the knowledge society. This is particularly true for the developing nations of South Asia particularly SAARC members which are characterised by huge pool of human capital with sharp differences at disaggregated levels (such as between the rural and urban population, skilled and unskilled workers.

India’s Export Potential to Other SAARC Countries: A Gravity Model Analysis

India’s export potential to other SAARC nations (Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) was calculated with the help of gravity model of exports using panel data methodology (pooled model, fixed effect model and random effect model) by taking the time period 1981-2005. To find out the convergence and divergence of India’s exports to SAARC members, speed of convergence was used. Moreover, study has also tried to find whether there is convergence of the actual data towards the estimated equilibrium. The study reveals that there was presence of convergence in India exports with SAARC countries and in the other words, actual India’s exports to SAARC countries converged towards the estimated export potential. Among SAARC countries, India’s export potential exists for Maldives, Bhutan, Pakistan and Nepal. India is the only SAARC member that shares land border with four members and sea border with two. No other SAARC country shares a common border with each other. In terms of trade, commerce, investments etc., India is a source of potential investment and technology and a major market for products from all other SAARC members. Therefore, it is essentially in India’s interest to put her weight behind SAARC.  Â

India's Recent Infrastructure Development Initiatives: A Comparative Analysis of South and Southeast Asia

Since the early 1990s, the number of Regional Trade Agreements has increased considerably across continents. This is resulting into increasing regional integration with substantial importance being given to cross-border connectivity development. India, a late subscriber of active RTA strategy, is enthusiastically venturing into cross-border connectivity exercises to enhance its trade integration with the neighbouring countries in recent period. Developing cross-border connectivity is currently receiving salience in the regional forums like SAARC, though limited progress has been made so far. In contrast, ASEAN is the only forum in Asia where substantial progress in integration through cross-border infrastructure augmentation has been witnessed. India has recently entered into FTA with ASEAN and is involved in several infrastructure augmentation projects in several ASEAN member countries. Given this background, the current paper seeks to analyze the Indian infrastructure development initiatives in the immediate and Southeastern neighborhood. The discussion covers the SAARC and ASEAN initiatives towards building physical infrastructure, as well as the recent aid for trade initiatives being undertaken in South and Southeast Asia. The paper concludes by drawing the lessons for SAARC members from the ASEAN experience.

The Least Developed SAARC Members: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal & Maldives by Prakash Chandra Adhikary

The Least Developed SAARC Members: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal & Maldives by Prakash Chandra Adhikary