New Delhi: Foreign Ministers of SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation) countries will meet in Islamabad for a two-day session from July 20 to discuss progress on SAFTA (South Asian Free Trade Association) and Indian proposals including establishing a Food Bank and South Asian Development Bank.

Undertaking his maiden visit to Pakistan after the new UPA (United Progressive Alliance) Government assumed office, External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh will lead the Indian delegation for the mid-session stocktaking on decisions taken at SAARC summit in Islamabad in January this year.

Singh, who was India's Ambassador to Pakistan during 1980-82, will have a busy schedule ahead of him. Apart from the SAARC conference, he will have bilateral meetings with his counterparts from the seven-member grouping.

The minister will twice meet Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf. The first time will be on July 20 when all the SAARC Foreign Ministers will call on the Pakistan President. He is also slated to call on Musharraf after the conference.

During his stay, Singh will have interaction with interim Prime Minister Shujaat Husseien and Prime Minister-designate and Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz.

India has been underpinning the importance of SAARC being energised and that it must have a positive agenda centered around economic cooperation.

India has been pressing for quick movement on SAFTA. Under the framework agreement, SAFTA will come into operation by January one, 2006 and become fully operational by 2016. It envisages a phased tariff liberalisation programme.

As part of this, non-least developed countries (LDCs) will bring down tariffs to 20 per cent while LDCs will bring them down to 30 per cent.

The basic issues that needs to be sorted out are the "sensitive list" that is the items which the member countries would like to be excluded from free trade and "rules of origin" which relates to the quantum of local content to be added to goods imported from outside the region so as to qualify for trading within SAARC.

The ministerial meeting is expected to review progress on the Additional Protocol on Terrorism signed by the member States under which they pledged to stop financing of terrorist organisations.

India has also been advocating expeditious movement towards Customs Union and eventually a South Asian Economic Union.

New Delhi seeks action-oriented cooperation in areas like energy, water management, information and communication technologies, transport and infrastructure development.

New Delhi's proposal for a Poverty Alleviation Fund placed at the last SAARC Summit may also come up. India wants such a fund to be professionally managed on specific poverty alleviation programmes and projects.