The member-nations of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) will discuss a roadmap to fight the challenge of COVID-19, the novel coronavirus, today (15).

The discussion will take place at 5 pm this evening via conferencing, stated the Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka.

The nations are to scheme a strong common strategy to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday had proposed that the leaders of the SAARC countries should chalk out a joint strategy to fight coronavirus.

“I would like to propose that the leadership of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) nations chalk out a strong strategy to fight Coronavirus. We could discuss, via video conferencing, ways to keep our citizens healthy,” PM Modi had tweeted.

Within hours, leaders of several SAARC nations endorsed PM Modi’s proposal, promising their complete support towards the collective effort against the pandemic.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa also expressed his willingness to join the discussion and learn the best practices from the other SAARC members.

‘Thank you for the great initiative Shri @narendramodi - #LKA is ready to join the discussion & share our learnings & best practices and to learn from other #SAARC members. Let’s unite in solidarity during these trying times and keep our citizens safe’, tweeted President Rajapaksa.