♤ The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) formed in 1997.

♤ It comprises Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand, and brings together 1.5 billion people or 21% of the world population and a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of over $2.5 trillion.

♤ For India, making BIMSTEC work is important as for years it has blamed Pakistan for holding back the SAARC.

♤ India’s leadership in activating the BIMSTEC was evident in the BRICS-BIMSTEC outreach hosted in Goa in 2016.