PM Modi attends the 6th BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok,Thailand

Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the sixth BIMSTEC Summit meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, on 4th April 2025, where he proposed several initiatives to strengthen the organisation.

The Summit meeting was attended by the leaders of the seven member countries of BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) - India, Thailand, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bhutan. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on a two-day official visit to Thailand on 3&4th April 2025. 

From Thailand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi flew to Sri Lanka on the second leg of his foreign tour. This is his fourth visit to Sri Lanka since he became the Prime Minister in 2014. 

PM Modi Proposes Several Initiatives

While addressing the Summit Meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed several initiatives to strengthen the BIMSTEC. 

Main initiatives proposed by PM Modi.

• India will set up BIMSTEC Centres of Excellence in India on Disaster Management, Sustainable Maritime Transport, Traditional Medicine, and Research and Training in Agriculture. 
• India to host 4th joint exercises between BIMSTEC Disaster Management Authorities..
  BODHI (BIMSTEC for Organized Development of Human Resource Infrastructure Programme). India will train 300 youth of the region every year.
• India to launch a pilot study to assess regional needs in Digital Public Infrastructure and a capacity-building programme for cancer care in the region.
• He offered to establish the BIMSTEC Chamber of Commerce and to organize the BIMSTEC Business Summit every year in India.
• India will hold the first meeting of the Home Ministers' Mechanism.
• BIMSTEC Energy Centre in Bengaluru has become functional.

Initiative to strengthen people-to-people ties 

• India will host the BIMSTEC Athletics Meet in 2025.
• India will host 1st BIMSTEC Games in 2027;
• India will host the BIMSTEC Traditional Music Festival.

Host and Theme of the 6th BIMSTEC Summit Meeting 2025

Thailand hosted the 6th BIMSTEC meeting. 

Thailand was hosting the summit meeting for the second time. It hosted the first summit meeting in 2004.

The theme of the 6th meeting was -  BIMSTEC: Prosperous, Resilient and Open.

The meeting was chaired by Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Prime Minister of Thailand. 

The meeting was attended by the leaders of the member countries-  K.P. Sharma Oli, Prime Minister of Nepal; Senior General  Min Aung Hlaing, Chairman of the State Administration Council, which rules Myanmar; Tshering Tobgay, Prime Minister of Bhutan; and Muhammad Yunus, Chief Adviser of the interim government of Bangladesh.

Prime Minister Modi met Muhammad Yunus for the first time.

Bangladesh Assumes BIMSTEC Chairmanship 

• At the end of the 6th BIMSTEC summit meeting, the next chairmanship was formally handed over from Thailand to Bangladesh.
• Bangladesh will hold the post for the next two years, and it will also host the 7th BIMSTEC summit meeting. 
• The date of the 7th Summit meeting has not been decided.  

About BIMSTEC

Established as BIST-EC (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand Economic Cooperation)  in 1997.

Later in 1997, it was renamed  BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation)  when Myanmar joined it.

Members - India, Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Myanmar.

Secretariat - Dhaka, Bangladesh

Summit Meeting 

• 1st Summit held in  Bangkok, Thailand in 2004
• 2nd in New Delhi in 2008
• 3rd  in Naypyidaw, Myanmar  in 2014
• 4th in Kathmandu, Nepal in 2018
• 5th was  a virtual meeting hosted by Sri Lanka in 2022
• 6th summit meeting hosted by Thailand in 2025.

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