New Delhi, Sep 8 (IANS): India Thursday urged other South Asian countries to remove tariff and non-tariff barriers to help boost trade and investments and ensure economic integration of the region.

"A range of tariff and non-tariff barriers, that have been erected in our region in the early years of our respective independence prevented businesses from developing value in the neighbourhood," said Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

He said South Asia region is geographically and culturally designed for the widest possible cooperation but in reality it is the least integrated region in the world.

Addressing the first meeting of South Asia Forum organised here by the ministry of external affairs and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Ahluwalia urged all South Asian countries to remove barriers that hinder flow of trade and investment.

"Existence of tariff walls, problematic as it is, is in a sense as much a symptom of a problem as its a challenge in itself," he said.

Referring to a World Bank report, Ahluwalia said intra-regional trade in South Asia is less than 2 percent of GDP, as compared to over 20 percent in East Asia. "Cost of trading across borders in South Asia is one of the highest in the world."

He said all indices of intra-regional economic cooperation in South Asia were significantly lower than in other regions, leading to low trade and investment flows.

The Planning Commission deputy chairman also underlined the need for investing in capacity building of the young people in the region through education so as to provide them with productive jobs.

"If we fail to provide for this democratic bulge, the implications on the stability of our societies will be significant. The instability that could be generated will be hard to capture within national boundaries," he warned.