This document outlines an assignment for a team to analyze the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). The team is asked to research SAARC's history, objectives, and performance. Additionally, they are to prepare a presentation for the Prime Minister of India advising him on how India should engage with SAARC at the upcoming summit in Nepal, drawing on the perspective of one of three consulting firms with different views on international political economy.

1. Team Assignment
IBE401:
The Global Business Environment

4. Find out about it …
• What is it?
• When was it set up?
• Why was it formed?
• What are its
objectives?
• Make a note of all
important factual
information

6. Now you are in possession of the facts …
• Has it been successful?
• How does it compare
to other regional
groupings?
• What are academics
and other
commentators saying?
• What is your analysis
of SAARC?

8. Is it really
worth the
effort?

9. The 18th SAARC Summit
• Scheduled for the first quarter of 2014
• To be held in Katmandhu, Nepal
• PM Manmohan Singh has pressing matters to
deal with at home and feels ambivalent about
attnding the SAARC Summit
• He is seeking advice from some expert
international business consultants based in
Chandigarh …

10. Prepare a presentation for the PM
• Dr Manmohan Singh seeks diversity of opinion
and he has requested three very different
consultancy firms be contacted to tender for
this work
• His aides have been careful, therefore, to
approach consultants with contrasting
perspectives on international political
economy
• The three companies are …

11. • The Structuralists & Partners
• The Liberalists Limited
• The Realists Inc.

12. From the viewpoint typically put
forward by your consultancy …
• Prepare an engaging and informative
PowerPoint presentation for the PM and his
advisors (no more than 20 slides)
• Outline the background to SAARC and how it
has evolved
• Provide a critique of its performance to date
• Make recommendations as to how India
should engage with SAARC moving forward.