Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN) – The SAARC Council of Ministers on Tuesday adopted the Charter of Democracy in Thimphu. 
The idea was mooted by Bangladesh at the 16th SAARC Summit in April last year. The draft Charter was finalized in Dhaka in September 2010.
The Charter gives expression to the collective commitment of the Member States to promote and preserve the values and ideals of democracy as well as democratic institutions.
Foreign Minister Dipu Moni led the Bangladesh delegation to the SAARC 
Council of Ministers meeting held in the Bhutanese capital.
In her statement, the foreign minister laid emphasis on redoubling efforts in the agriculture sectors in the face of spiraling food prices globally. 
She also stressed the need to operationalise the SAARC Food Bank, finalize the Seed Bank agreement, and implement the regional food security projects
Dipu Moni called for early removal of all kinds of para-tariff and non-tariff barriers to realize the full potential of SAFTA. She underscored the need to implement SAARC Agreement on Trade in Services (SATIS), as an instrument to allow freer movement of people and ideas, and also to create employment through flow of investments. 
She underlined the need to voice the collective concern of South Asia in the face of challenges posed by climate change. 
The foreign minister stated that in order to promote greater people-to-people contact the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme needed periodic review. 
She called for collective actions to fight the menace of terrorism, trans-national organized crime, illegal trading of drugs and narcotic substances, regional extremism and money laundering.
It directed the Food Bank Board to address the issue of price incentive and access threshold to enable release of grains out of its reserve. It also approved the idea of demonstration run of a cargo train from Bangladesh to Nepal via India. 
Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes, Bangladesh Ambassador to Bhutan and other senior officials of the foreign ministry are attending the Council session.
 
BBN/SI/AD-08Feb11-6:35 pm (BST)