Bhutan proposes to host SAARC summit

Kathmandu, March 25, 2009: For the first time, Bhutan has expressed its willingness to host the 16th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit after the Maldives declined to host citing global recession.

Media reports from India and Nepal say government of Bhutan has sent a proposal to this effort to the SAARC secretariat in Kathmandu about two week ago expressing interest to host the summit. 

Since the birth of the regional organization, Bhutan has never hosted any summits so far, along with Afghanistan – the new entrant to the SAARC.

However, Bhutan may face constraints since the summits are hosted in accordance with alphabetical orders of the country’s name and the SAARC secretariat is required to get approval from Nepal, Pakistan and Afghanistan to allow Bhutan to host the summit.