As Prime Minister Sushil Koirala prepares to leave for Myanmar on Sunday to participate in the third Bimstec Summit, experts question whether the regional forum means anything to Nepal other than a diplomatic ritual.

"It is a forum to boost intra-regional trade. But we should be clear about what should be our agenda, what perspective does Nepal hold in this forum and what kind of relations Nepal wants to maintain with the member-states in particular and Bimstec in general," said former Foreign Minister Prakash Chandra Lohani. 

For Nepal's new prime minister, his meeting with Indian PM Manmohan Singh on the sidelines is seen as a key agenda. At the regional forum three agreements are to be signed and Nepal has no direct stakes in any of these—a  weather and climate centre is to be set up in New Delhi, a permanent Bimstec Secretariat in Dhaka, and Bimstec culture centre in Thimphu.

"Bimstec has neither gathered steam nor it has a long history," said another senior diplomat Bhek Bahadur Thapa. "It's just another regional forum, minus Pakistan, and with Myanmar and Thailand added." Bimstec was established in 1997 and Nepal became a member in 2003. Five Saarc countries (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Sri Lanka and Nepal) are Bimstec members, with Thailand and Myanmar completing the line-up. Bimstec was initiated with the goal to combine the 'Look West' policy of Thailand and Asean with the 'Look East' policy of India and South Asia.  

Analyst Sridhar Khatri termed Bimstec as 'eastward looking' and Saarc as 'the centre' but the former lagged far behind Saarc in terms of its evolution as a regional forum. In the context of China's possible engagement in Bimstec, Prof Khatri said China is looking to engage with the regional groupings in South Asia, East Asia and Central Asia "in a big way".  

Former Foreign Secretary Madhu Raman Acharya, who was deeply involved in the BIMSTEC process for Nepal government, said that unlike Saarc, Bimstec holds less political significance for Nepal, "though it is very important for our economic integration. It is known as the Bay of Bengal Initiative and our economic lifeline lies in the Bengal sea port."

For others, Bimstec has already lost much of its early charm. "Initially, India wanted to enter South East Asia and it held a significant meaning but after India and Asean signed a separate bilateral agreement, it lost its charm gradually," said Posh Raj Pandey, a trade expert. "I do not see any direct economic benefits [for Nepal] from Bimstec. It is just a diplomatic forum where leaders and officials can maintain their diplomatic and personal relations."