‘India can boost int’l trade by making borders superfluid’

Guwahati: India can increase inter-regional trade with its neighbouring countries threefold by making international borders superfluid for the seamless movement of logistics, goods and tourists, World Bank’s country director, Auguste Tano Kouame said here on Friday.
He was speaking on the sidelines of a brainstorming session ‘Unlocking Economic Opportunities for Northeast States’ organised by the Assam government and the World Bank.
Talking to TOI, he said impediments in the full implementation of the Motor Vehicles Agreement (MVA) 2015 signed and ratified by India, Bangladesh and Nepal must be removed to ensure smooth movement, something which was agreed upon by high-level officials and delegates,
Delegates noted with concern that the agreement has yet to become effective — eight years after the MVA framework agreement was signed in 2015 — and called for its early implementation.
“The MVA is an important step towards this direction and can bring increased economic opportunities to rural communities in the NE,” Auguste said. “If India has greater trade with Bangladesh and other countries, based on India’s natural and economic environment, the country’s trade level would be three times higher,” Auguste said, adding that the NE will reap even more benefits.