REGIONALISM FROM WITHIN: THE ENDOGENOUS CHALLENGES TO SOUTH ASIAN FUNCTIONAL INTEGRATION

Abstract

As the world continues to reap benefits of effective regionalism especially in areas of low politics corroborated from the success stories of EU, ASEAN, NAFTA, GCC etc., it is the South Asian regionalism that continues to be moribund to the extent it seems to have come to an end particularly given the recent developments in South Asian regional context signified by the complete breakdown of regionalist schemes including SAARC. Despite continued efforts to reinvigorate regional integration, SAARC continues to experience comatose. Through employing an endogenous approach of regionalism to analyze South Asian functional integration, the paper attempts to critically delineate endogenous factors contributing to fracturing South Asian regionalism.  The paper finds that the endogenous factors rooted in politico-security, economic and social/societal aspects play as causative catalysts in hindering successful development of South Asian functional integration. The paper also utilizes the theoretical framework of “regionness” to draw significant insights regarding the developmental limitations of South Asian functional integration. The study is imperative as it takes a comprehensive yet diagnostic analysis of the issue identified. Although much has been documented on the issues of South Asian regionalism, this study attempts to theorize the problem from an endogenous perspective of regionalism, especially from the perspective of “regionness” which remains the most effective paradigm for studying regional integration dynamics.