South Asia, home to nearly two billion people, finds itself at a moment of reckoning. Political instability, economic slowdown, and mounting climate challenges are reshaping the region in ways that transcend borders. Recent upheavals underscore this fragility: in Nepal, youth-led protests forced Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to resign on 9 September, deepening the country’s chronic cycle of political instability.

Bangladesh, too, is navigating leadership change under Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, while Sri Lanka continues its painful recovery from the 2022 economic collapse. These episodes are not isolated — they point to a deeper systemic malaise that threatens the collective future of the region. South Asia grapples with staggering youth unemployment, entrenched corruption, climate-induced displacement, and fragile public health systems. Each of these crises spills across borders. Floods in one country displace communities in another. Disease outbreaks move quickly through porous frontiers. Economic shocks in one market reverberate throughout the region. Yet, despite these shared vulnerabilities, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) — founded in 1985 to foster cooperation — has been dormant since its last summit in 2014. For India, the region’s largest economy and geopolitical heavyweight, reviving SAARC is not just desirable; it is essential. The Global South is asserting greater influence, with its collective GDP projected to reach 40–60 per cent under purchasing power parity in coming years. South Asia remains one of the fastest-growing regions, yet momentum is slowing. The World Bank’s South Asia Development........

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