Regional cooperation is a marathon, not a sprint: Highlights from 2024

2024 was the year of elections and political change across South Asia. From political upheaval in Bangladesh to general elections across five countries in the region, domestic issues made headlines. Amidst this, regional cooperation moved ahead with a slower pace in some areas, and in others, it continued with strong strides.

Regional connectivity and cooperation in South Asia is like running a marathon—sometimes you run fast, sometimes you walk, and if need be, you even pause, but then keep moving.  As we work closely with our clients and partners on solutions that deliver benefit at scale, we also recognize that the impact and results can sometimes be slow to mature.

This year, the good news was that there is a stronger consensus and acceptance across our partners that some of the critical challenges of today cannot be dealt in isolation, for instance air pollution or climate risks.  Here are a few highlights from 2024:

Air quality management and climate cooperation are moving ahead:  The countries of the Indo Gangetic Plain and Himalayan Foothills (IGP-HF)—Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, India, and Pakistan—are in strong agreement that tackling air pollution is not a solo battle. It needs multisectoral and transboundary collaboration because airsheds “know no borders”.  The regional stakeholders, including policy makers, scientists and development partners, met at the second Science Policy Dialogue on Air Quality Management in Bhutan in June 2024, and reaffirmed the critical need for cooperation. Collaborative measures are not only effective, but also bring faster results and at 45% lower costs as compared to ad hoc measures. The members have also considered an aspirational goal of <35 µg/m3 for annual PM2.5 concentrations by 2035 (“35 by 35”).  

Similarly, on plastic pollution, there is stronger momentum on strengthening regional efforts to reduce marine plastic pollution and promote innovation to transform plastic usage and production.

Addressing climate risks also requires increased cooperation. The World Bank-supported South Asia Hydromet Forum is bringing together representatives from national meteorological and hydrological (hydromet) services from across the region for technical training, data sharing, and knowledge exchange to strengthen consensus forecasting and early warning systems. This strong cooperation is saving lives and livelihoods. For example, in marine forecasting, meteorologists in India and Maldives have helped counterparts in Sri Lanka improve forecasts and advance warnings about extreme wave heights to the country’s fishing community. A small but a sure win on cooperation. 

Women are key to regional development: Improved trade, digital and physical connectivity continue to yield strong benefits for the region’s economic growth and prosperity. Our work in Eastern South Asia is supporting connectivity via improved and sustainable transport infrastructure, along with simplification, automation, and digitalization of trade processes and systems. A key highlight has been greater inclusion of women in programs like regional trade, transport, tourism, and infrastructure. For example, Halima Begum in Bangladesh is among the 795 women employed in by the local engineering department in construction and maintenance of Western regional corridors in Bangladesh. Or Runu Hazarika in Assam has stepped into the role of a boat operator and owner, working in the inland water transport connectivity sector.  Efforts are also on to make these traditionally gender-blind sectors more inclusive. Simple facilities like availability of childcare on site, access to separate restrooms, and well-lit spaces, are helping remove barriers to women’s economic participation.  Regional platforms like WePower—a network of women professionals in energy and power sector—have strengthened women’s participation, skill development, and cross-border knowledge exchanges. This year, a group of 101 mid-career South Asian women engineers (SAR100) completed a 9-month training to upgrade their skills, knowledge, and build leadership in the power sector.

Hydropower, the first trilateral exchange:  In November 2024, South Asia saw a historic trilateral power sharing agreement come into effect. Nepal exported 40MW of hydro electricity to energy-hungry Bangladesh via the Indian grid. This formally opened energy trade between Nepal and Bangladesh, with hopefully much more to come. In Bhutan, Druk Green Power Corporation Limited inked an agreement with Tata Power in India for the development of 5,000 MW of clean energy. This partnership promises to harness Bhutan's hydropower potential and support both countries' growing energy demands with clean energy supply. This also highlights the important role of the private sector in clean energy transition.  The World Bank analysis finds that with South Asia’s robust growth, energy demand will double by 2050, and the region’s emissions footprint will increase by 30% in the same period.  With right policies and incentives, which include leveraging private sector, cross border electricity markets, use of renewables and energy efficiency, the region can deliver emissions cuts up to 40% by 2050.   

Future of regional cooperation lies with the youth :   This year, the South Asian Economics’ Students Meet (SAESM) celebrated its 20^th anniversary. SAESM is a vibrant network which brings together undergraduate economics students from South Asian countries to share academic research, deepen their understanding of the region, and build bonds and friendships. The World Bank has been closely associated with supporting this network that has a strong alumni base of over 1,000 + students.  An ongoing survey has revealed that for over 90% of the alumni, SAESM facilitated their first ever visit to the neighboring South Asian country, and over 80% have built lasting bonds and relations via the meet.  For a region which has the largest youth population globally, these young voices are the drivers of sustainable development, innovation, and regional cooperation. Tapping into their collective power and ingenuity can help  strengthen the vision of #OneSouthAsia.

A look back on a few of these successes is a reminder that there is much work ahead of us. The challenges and opportunities for collaboration will evolve and reset, but the trajectory on regional cooperation remains in the right direction. This is not a sprint, but a marathon, with a long-term vision.