SAARC at standstill : How a dormant regional block missed it’s moment in a time of crisis

Had SAARC remained active after its 18th Summit in 2014, it would have convened its 23rd Summit by 2024 and been preparing for a 24th, potentially providing an institutional mechanism to de-escalate tensions during the recent major conflict that brought India and Pakistan to the brink of war.
The recent escalation between India and Pakistan which led to cross-border strikes, drone warfare, and nuclear threats has severely jeopardized peace across South Asia, exacerbating regional instability in the absence of functional diplomatic platforms like SAARC.
The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) has historically played a pivotal role in easing tensions among member states, prioritizing regional cooperation and the welfare of South Asian citizens. Notably, it has helped to mitigate conflicts, particularly between Pakistan and India, by facilitating dialogue and promoting peace.
Since its inception, SAARC commitment to promoting trade and cooperation has been a cornerstone of its agenda. Historically, SAARC summits served as critical off-ramps during crises: for instance, sideline talks at the 1998 Colombo Summit facilitated the Lahore Agreement, and the 2002 Kathmandu Summit eased military standoffs after the Kargil conflict. Without these forums, communication often deteriorated into public recriminations, eliminating trusted channels for dialogue that previously enabled composite talks on regional issues. An operational SAARC could have mitigated the 2025 crisis through economic interdependence. Under a fully implemented South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA), intra-regional trade, stagnating at 5% of South Asia global trade due to political barriers, might have expanded, creating stakeholder industries lobbying against conflict.
With a population of nearly two billion people, South Asia represents a vast market and an immense opportunity for collective growth. Yet, instead of harnessing this potential, countries in the region often become entangled in bilateral disputes, undermining regional prosperity. Alarmingly, around 50 percent of the region population continues to live in poverty, highlighting the need for renewed cooperation and shared development goals.
SAARC revival remains elusive, despite calls from leaders like S. Jaishankar, Dr. Muhammad Yunus, Chief Adviser of Bangladesh and Pakistan and other member countries commitment to revive SAARC. While member states, maintain representatives at the Kathmandu Secretariat, the regional body remains largely inactive, raising questions about the political will for cooperation.
Despite these declarations, there has been little meaningful progress in reactivating SAARC, raising critical questions about the political will and commitment of member states to prioritize the needs of South Asia almost two billion people. Although all member countries maintain representatives at the SAARC Secretariat in Kathmandu, Nepal, the regional body remains largely not effective.
SAARC has historically played a crucial role in promoting dialogue and cooperation among its member states. However, since the postponement of the 19th SAARC Summit scheduled for 2016 in Islamabad, Pakistan, significant dialogue among member states has been absent.
This has left the organization apex bodies largely inactive, undermining efforts by the private sector to establish meaningful cross-border networks. Consequently, many businesses are now shifting their focus beyond the region, which hampers efforts to promote intra-regional trade and cooperation. This prolonged stagnation has disproportionately affected smaller and landlocked countries, exacerbating their challenges and underscoring the urgent need to revitalize SAARC role in promoting regional development and stability.
The SAARC was established in 1985 with a vision to bring peace, prosperity, and people together across the region. It once offered a strong platform for dialogue, trade, and cooperation, helping member countries find common ground, even during tense political moments. While SAARC is still present on paper, its activities are not functioning at full potential. In earlier years, its summits enabled dialogue between leaders and helped avoid escalations. Agreements have been signed across multiple areas, trade, health, education and connectivity, but their progress remains slow. The South Asia, a home to nearly two billion people, have yet to see the benefits promised in those declarations.
SAARC strength has never been about resolving political disputes directly, but about building everyday trust, through student exchanges, shared markets, and coordinated disaster responses. These mechanisms are vital for peace. When they are absent, misunderstandings risk growing into conflicts that affect everyone. The South Asian University, based in New Delhi, was a visionary initiative. But imagine if it had branches in every member country, allowing students to study in Pakistan mountains, Sri Lanka coastlines, Indian plains or Nepal valleys. These shared classrooms would help dissolve stereotypes and build lifelong friendships. More exchange programs would connect youth across borders, creating a generation shaped by shared experiences, not divided by old narratives.
SAARC has already contributed to people well-being. Health clinics supported by the SAARC Development Fund (SDF) have quietly saved lives in remote areas. Food banks helped in times of drought. But these successes remain limited in reach. With stronger political support, such initiatives could grow, perhaps into regional vaccine drives or emergency response teams that move quickly across borders during disasters. These actions speak to the true spirit of SAARC: regional unity to improve the lives of ordinary people.
Whether it’s people visiting sacred sites across borders, craftswomen selling handmade textiles in neighbouring countries, or students pursuing education beyond their homeland, these are not grand political gestures, but simple human aspirations. Yet, current visa systems restrict such movements. The SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme, which allows limited travel for businesspeople, issues just around 200 visas per country each year, a drop in the ocean for a region of two billion. For trade, tourism, and trust to flourish, this number must grow. A common SAARC tourist visa, long discussed but never implemented, could transform mobility in the region.
In addition, more direct flights connecting all South Asian capitals, Colombo to Kathmandu, Dhaka to Kabul, Lahore to Delhi, would turn South Asia into a truly connected neighborhood. These connections would not just boost tourism, but promote dialogue, cultural understanding, and shared economic opportunities. Religious tourism, too, holds immense potential. South Asia is home to some of the world most sacred sites across faiths. Facilitating pilgrimages could unite people spiritually and culturally.
Despite political pauses, the foundation of SAARC is solid. Signed agreements on energy, connectivity, trade, and social development await fuller implementation. What is needed now is not new declarations, but action. Scholarships for students, simplified travel rules, affordable flights, and business-friendly border policies could bring immediate benefits. Each time a young person crosses a border to study, a trader expands their market, or a family visits a sacred place, the dream of SAARC lives on. When SAARC was functioning, summits offered space for dialogue and cooling of tensions. For example, previous meetings helped ease situations after the Kargil conflict and during military stand-offs. Today, with SAARC not functioning at its full potential, countries lack the diplomatic cushions that once helped avoid escalation.
And yet, there is hope. Indian External Affairs Minister recently said that “SAARC is not off the table.” Pakistan and Bangladesh other member countries have also expressed support for its revival. Leaders from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Maldives, and Afghanistan have long stood behind the vision of SAARC. All maintain their diplomatic presence at the SAARC Secretariat in Kathmandu. The challenge is not about structure; it is about political will.
SAARC is not a platform that can be replaced or replicated. It is built on a natural alliance, formed not just by geography, but by shared history, culture, and aspirations. The countries of South Asia are not distant partners; they are neighbors bound by centuries of interaction, migration, and exchange. From language and cuisine to festivals and philosophies, the region common threads run deep. No external alliance or global forum can substitute the unique foundation upon which SAARC stands. Its strength lies in the fact that it is a homegrown initiative, designed by South Asians, for South Asians, to address the region distinct challenges and unlock its collective potential.
People of the region are not asking for the impossible. They want peace, opportunity, and the freedom to travel, learn, and work across borders. It’s time for SAARC to be reactivated, not just for governments but for the people it was meant to serve. As the famous saying goes, ‘Rivers don’t stop at borders. Why must we?’ When SAARC works as envisioned, it responds not with politics, but with a common vision, thriving marketplaces, and the quiet truth that the futures of South Asian people flow together.