Kathmandu Aug 31 (IANS) The Fourth Bimstec Summit concluded here on Friday after issuing an 18-point Kathmandu Declaration. The details of the declaration will be made public soon an official said.
The member states also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the establishment of a Bimstec Gird Interconnection.
At the conclusion of the summit Nepal Prime Minister K.P. Oli said: "This is my firm conviction that this summit has been a significant step towards making Bimstec a dynamic effective and result-oriented organisation."
Bimstec came into existence on June 6 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration.
It comprises seven countries lying in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal -- Bangladesh Bhutan India Myanmar Nepal Sri Lanka and Thailand.
The bloc brings together 1.6 billion people or 22 per cent of the world s population and has a combined GDP of $2.8 trillion.

--IANS giri/in/sed