The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is an organization of South Asian nations, founded in December 1985 and dedicated to economic, technological, social, and cultural development emphasizing collective self-reliance with its headquarters in Kathmandu, Nepal. The 11 stated areas of cooperation are agriculture, education, culture, sports, health, population, child welfare, the environment and meteorology, rural development (including the SAARC Youth Volunteers Program), tourism, transport, science and technology and communications. At present there is almost no cooperation between the member countries in jute sector though it is a major commodity in several countries.