President Mahinda Rajapaksa has stressed that in the prevailing competition between food and fuel, Sri Lanka was firm in the decision that no land that can be used for food will be used for bio-fuel whatever the commercial attraction may be. Addressing the FAO Conference on food security in Rome yesterday President Rajapaksa said it was the belief of Sri Lanka that food for the people should have the highest priority, and not the running of gas-guzzling vehicles.

The SAARC Food Bank is likely to be operational soon with the completion of ratification by the member states, reliable sources said. According to a highly placed source, among the member states of the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC), so far four -- Bangladesh, Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka -- have ratified the declaration for establishment of the proposed SAARC Food Bank. The declaration is now awaiting the ratification by the other SAARC nations.

Fourteen SAARC Summits have been held till date, but the South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA) is yet to take off! While ASEAN and EU are reaping the benefits of a common market, South Asian countries continue to lag behind. Since the start of our liberal economic policies we have been opening up our market to foreign goods and investments, such as China and South East Asia . While we have signed FTA with Thailand , SAFTA is still elusive.

Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala Sunday urged the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to stress on the poverty alleviation and infrastructure development. At a meeting with SAARC General Secretary Dr Shree Kanta Sharma, who reached the PM's official residence at Baluwatar this morning, PM Koirala discussed on the expansion of south Asian assistance. PM Koirala also expressed commitment to extend all kinds of support to the SAARC countries on behalf of Nepal, PM's advisor for foreign affairs Aditya Baral informed.