Project Leader: Dr. Nisha Taneja
Research Team: Sanjana Joshi, Samridhi Bimal, Isha Dayal, Devyani Pande and Vatsala Shreeti
Commencement: August 2012
Completion: March 2015
Funded by: U.K. Government Agencies
The issues regarding normalising trade between India and Pakistan have been at the forefront of regional economic cooperation of South Asia in recent times. The trade normalisation process between India and Pakistan has progressed, with both countries acknowledging the huge bilateral trade potential and are making efforts to integrate further. In keeping with the overall aim of improving trade and investment relations between India and Pakistan, the project, in its third year, generated a great deal of attention through practical research and fostering multi-level dialogue platforms. The project’s research studies were carried out in collaboration with Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Institute of Business Administration (IBA), Karachi and Sustainable Policy Development Institute (SDPI), Islamabad.
Over the three years, the focus of the research studies has been on enhancing trade in goods and services, and removing barriers to trade and sectoral trade, particularly trade in agriculture, automobiles and pharmaceuticals. In addition, the first volume on India-Pakistan Trade: Strengthening Economic Relations was released by Shri. Yashwant Sinha, Former External Affairs Minister, India at the Third Annual Conference held in New Delhi in February 2015. Examining the implications of recent important developments, the primary aim of this book is to bridge the gaps in existing literature on India-Pakistan economic engagement and to examine various aspects of the trade normalisation process. The book included familiar themes of India-Pakistan bilateral trade in goods and services, provided new insights into the potential for trade and the challenges involved in realising it.
Three editions of the India-Pakistan Trade newsletter on issues such as South Asian trade integration, inputs to the SAARC Summit, and formation of a National Trade Facilitation Committee were also published during this year. With the aim of widely disseminating the findings of the research and to provide regular updates on the various activities, the project’s web portal www.indiapakistantrade.org has served as a knowledge repository on India-Pakistan trade for policymakers, academics and business persons.
The findings of the project’s research studies were presented at the project’s Third Annual Conference in February 2015. The following studies were completed this year and will be brought out in the second conference volume.
