Colombo, Dec 8 (UNI) President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Sunday said South Asia needs to forge new avenues of cooperation to steer the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) organization to be more effective in addressing emerging challenges in the areas of security and poverty alleviation.
In a message to mark the occasion of the 35th SAARC Charter Day, Rajapaksa said Sri Lanka, as a founding member, attributes high importance to the purposes and principles of the SAARC Charter which aims to promote peace, stability, amity and progress in the South Asian region.