New Delhi, Jan 31 (IANS) India’s Jamia Millia university will collaborate with a Myanmar institute to launch a joint research programme on how to better ties, particularly related to trade and investment, between the two neighbours.
This was decided Tuesday at the end of a two-day seminar on “Myanmar: Bridging South and Southeast Asia” organised by the Jamia Millia Islamia and the Yangon-based Tampadipa Institute.
The concluding session of the Conference was addressed by Mani Shankar Aiyar, Member of Parliament, and by U Zam Cin Pao, Member of Parliament and Chairman, Chin National Party.
The active interest evinced by all participants and discussants, and specific suggestions made by them, have convinced the co-organisers of the conference to continue their collaboration by planning follow-up interactions between India and Myanmar.
A Brussels-based think tank, Euro Burma Office, will also collaborate with the two institutes in launching “joint research clusters where scholars and political representatives from India and Myanmar would meet and work towards preparing joint papers on matters of mutual interest”, a statement said.
“Some of the sectors identified for this follow-up include trade and investment, with an important focus on border-trade facilitation,” the statement said.
The statement emphasised that better connectivity between India and Myanmar and infrastructure development in the border areas will help in improving trade between the two neighbours.
They also vowed to explore financial connectivity to facilitate bilateral business linkages.
The research area will also encompass security Issues, cooperation in education and human resource development, technology exchanges in the agriculture and environment sectors and people-to-people exchanges.
The two-day seminar was chaired by Jamia Millia Islamia Vice Chancellor Najeeb Jung, with Academy of International Studies’ Prof. Veena Sikri, a former diplomat, coordinating the proceedings.
Around 30 delegates from Myanmar participated in the conference, including three MPs, elected in the November 2010 elections, and 12 senior political party leaders.
Many of them were visiting India for the first time. The Myanmar delegates included civil society representatives, educationists, social activists and heads of think-tanks.
