A five-point plan to turn the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation, or BIMSTEC, into an effective economic bloc was aired in Bangladesh on Saturday.

Bangladeshi foreign minister M Morshed Khan unveiled the plan to establish a free trade area and promote transport links between members of the group-Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, India, Nepal and Thailand-at a seminar in Dhaka.

Khan also proposed the development of the necessary institutional framework for monetary and customs cooperation between BIMSTEC countries by 2020.

According to a recent study, between US $43 billion and $59 billion worth of trade could be generated by the establishment of a free trade area among members.

But former director for the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, Dr M Rahmatullah, said a strong political commitment would be needed from BIMSTEC members if the plan were to be successful.