The SAARC Documentation Centre (SDC) is a regional body of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), based in New Delhi, India. It functions as a specialised information and documentation resource for the SAARC member states, supporting research, knowledge sharing, and access to scientific and technical information across South Asia.
| Type | Regional centre of SAARC |
|---|---|
| Parent organisation | South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation |
| Headquarters | New Delhi, India |
| Host country | India |
| Region served | South Asia (SAARC member states) |
The SAARC Documentation Centre is one of several regional centres established by SAARC to promote cooperation in specific functional areas. Its mandate covers the collection, organisation, and dissemination of information of relevance to the social, economic, scientific, and technical development of the SAARC region. The Centre supports networking among national documentation and information institutions in the member states.
SAARC was established in 1985 with the aim of promoting economic and regional integration among the countries of South Asia. To carry forward cooperation in specialised domains, SAARC has set up regional centres in various member states, each hosted by one of the countries and dealing with a defined sector such as agriculture, energy, culture, human resource development, or information. The SAARC Documentation Centre, hosted by India, addresses the information and documentation sector.
The Centre serves the eight SAARC member states:
By pooling documentation resources and expertise, the SAARC Documentation Centre contributes to capacity building of information professionals and supports evidence-based policymaking and research within South Asia. As one of the SAARC regional centres located in New Delhi, it also reflects India's role as a host to specialised institutions of the regional grouping.