1.    People-to-People Contacts and Cultural Connectivity

        We launched these cultural interactions for peace in 1987, with the first-ever Indo-Pakistan Writers Conference.

      FOSWAL was granted the status of a SAARC Recognized Body in January 2002, which was elevated to SAARC Apex Body in April, 2007. Ours is the only SAARC Recognised Body in the area of culture.

       Since then, FOSWAL has created a large fraternity of writers, poets, scholars, diplomats, academics and intellectuals through its varied initiatives. It has been promoting the ideals of SAARC, particularly in the areas of literature, art and culture, and has contributed significantly to the greater objective of peace and prosperity in South Asia.

2.     Publications     

       Already 15 Anthologies have been published : 11 in English, 1 in Hindi, 1 in Urdu and 3 in Bangla. Five of these are anthologies of prose and poetry, from the SAARC region translated into English. These are perhaps the first of such anthologies that bring together under a single cover, collection of writings from the SAARC region that highlight the similarity of  concerns, anguish, hopes and dreams of  diverse nations, bound together in a geo-cultural entity.

3.     Translations

       In the Summit of Culture Ministers of SAARC countries, it was decided that translations of literatures of different SAARC countries is a very essential prerequisite of cultural connectivity in the SAARC region, to understand each other's hearts and historical heritage as mirrored in literature.

       It was unanimously decided that the work should be allocated to our Foundation of SAARC Writers and Literature.

       Now that we have been assigned the responsibility, formally and officially in the Summit of Culture Ministers of SAARC countries, to translate the SAARC literature, we plan to enlarge and systematize our publication project, which will be a lasting contribution to cultural exchange in the SAARC region.

       We would like to first hold a brain-storming Workshop to identify the works to be translated and the methods of their translation, production and distribution.

       Our FOSWAL is continuously engaged in translations  of SAARC literature in English for enhancing and strengthening the appreciation of cultural nuances of different languages in different regions of India, in the neighbouring countries of the SAARC region, and in other parts of the world.

4.    Website

       An active and regularly maintained and updated website www.foundationsaarcwriters.com carries at least 800  creative writings like poetry and short stories, and thought-provoking articles especially those that have not been able to find place in any of the publications. The website gives a regular account of all the happenings in the SAARC Region and is a powerful medium of communication and advocacy for the work of the Foundation and its overall peace and unity initiatives.

5.    SAARC Journal

       A quarterly SAARC JOURNAL of Creative Ideas, Literature and Art titled: ‘Beyond Borders’ has been launched with a view to  sensitizing readers to issues of cultural sensitivity, need of cultural connectivity, gender sensitivity, and human rights. The editors and editorial board comprise the most eminent creative writers and  profound scholars of the region.

       This is the first journal of its kind in the SAARC region.

       The Journal hopes to make a visible impact on an expanding readership of the Foundation’s vision and activities, and dreams of a better, peaceful world where the ethical and democratic values, and human rights of all citizens are respected.

6.      Conferences

       FOSWAL has organized 21 Conferences till date in different countries of South Asia. In India, we have done SAARC Writers Conferences and Poetry Festivals in Delhi, Aligarh, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Shimla, Naldera, Amritsar, Bhubaneshwar, Cuttack, Konark and Puri. The themes of the conferences have ranged from cultural diversity, human rights,  rights of Dalits and Tribals, cultural connectivity, to issues of democracy and pluralist societies, religious intolerance, concerns about the arms race, terrorism, poverty and economic reforms.

7.   Important Initiatives for the Underprivileged

       Forum for the Marginalized : A Conference on Rights of Denotified Tribes and Nomadic Tribes was held in August 2002, which was addressed by former Prime Minister V. P. Singh, eminent Bangla writer and human rights activist, Smt. Mahasveta Devi. The participants also included activists for the rights of nomadic and denotified tribals as well as tribals  from all over India who shared their stories of colossal neglect and  marginalization, of inhuman degradation and extreme poverty.

8.    Youth Outreach Programme

       Meetings with students have been an integral part of the FOSWAL programme. These interactions are part of the agenda of all Conferences as the Foundation considers the mobilization and encouragement of young talent as a vital window to translating its vision of freedom, creativity and cultural bonding. Meetings have been held in Universities in Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

9.    Writers-in-Residence Programme

       This programme has been functioning since 2000. Writers from the SAARC countries are invited to live and travel in India, freely and informally, for upto a month, and Indian writers are sent to the neighbouring SAARC countries.

       They are given a month to roam around, meet writers and intellectuals, see plays and films, participate in creative activities of their choice, visit Universities, exchange views, visit places of historical interest.

       They keep taking notes, and when they return to their home country, they are expected to write creative travelogues of their impressions, of interactions with other  writers, and their views on cultural activities.

10.  Gender Advocacy and International Centre for Women’s Literature. Library of Women’s Literature

       The Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, have given an initial grant to set up an International Centre of Women’s Literature in recognition of the need to highlight gender issues, with particular emphasis on the SAARC region.

       The Library is being gradually built, adding books and documentation to it.

11.  Media

       There has been extensive media coverage in leading national and regional dailies not only of India, but of all the countries of SAARC Region by BBC, London, and journals during every conference in the  different countries. The reports have all described in positive terms  the deliberations and the outcome of the Conferences and Interactions. International Media has taken speical notice of this initiative.

12.      Departments of Comparative Literature

       One of the efforts of the Foundation has been to set up in each of the major universities of the SAARC region a department of comparative literature of the SAARC countries. This process was initiated in Tribhuvan University of Kathmandu, where the Department of English has launched a Centre of South Asian Studies, and the Nepali Department has started a Centre for Asian Literature. In Dhaka, the process of starting such centres in Dhaka University and Jahangirnagar University has also reached its final stage before being launched.

13.  Other Initiatives

       FOSWAL has been asked to curate art exhibitions in SAARC countries and to organize films and plays in India as well as in the neighbouring countries.

14.     Collaborations

       SAARC literary initiatives have been organized through the Foundation along with prestigious institutions such as the British Council, American Centre, HAWWA Associates (Pakistan), Government College Lahore University (Pakistan), Dhaka University, Jehangirnagar University (Bangladesh) Punjab University (Pakistan), Jamia Millia University and Aligarh Muslim University (India), and Peredeniya University (Sri Lanka), Institute of Advance Studies, Shimla.

15.  SAARC Information and Dissemination Centre

            The Foundation is gradually evolving a SAARC Information and Dissemination Centre for the promotion of art, literature and culture and is now considered an umbrella organization for all cultural initiatives in the South Asian region.