Saarc Covid-19 Emergency Fund couldn’t be set up

ISLAMABAD: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s four days old proposal for setting up a fund on Saarc platform to fight out coronavirus couldn’t get off the ground as the emergency fund hasn’t been set up yet and, so far, there has been officially no commitment from any of the Saarc countries on how much they will be voluntarily contributing to the fund.

Well-placed sources said no deadline has been given to set up the fund, and India is still working out the modalities on how the fund will be set up and whether an escrow account will be created for this. It has been pointed out that India has now proposed to hold a video conference with G20 leaders to explore measures to tackle the coronavirus outbreak. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Wednesday regarding his idea of holding a video conference with the G20 leaders.

During the video conference with the Saarc leaders on Sunday, Modi had suggested the creation of a ‘Saarc Covid-19 Emergency Fund’ for which India pledged a contribution of $10 million. India is following up with other countries on their voluntary contribution as no timelines have been given on the implementation of other proposals. New Delhi said on Wednesday that “We will initiate anyway and expect others to follow.”

A diplomat from one of the Saarc countries, however, said there has been no follow-up from India. “We have not yet heard anything from India. There has been no follow-up. Right now, governments are all busy attending to their nationals stuck abroad. This will take time,” the diplomat said in New Delhi.

Some of the other proposals such as setting up of rapid response teams, comprising doctors and specialists, and arranging for testing equipment are also moving at a slow, bureaucratic pace, the sources said. Another proposal of setting up a website with key information on Covid-19 in all Saarc languages is yet to take shape. According to experts, the proposals should have been implemented quickly, considering the situation.