This study examines the performance of the India-Sri Lanka Bilateral Free Trade Agreement (ILBFTA) signed in 1998 in the first six years of its coming into being and draws lessons from its success that could be relevant in the context of South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) and other such initiatives. The study provides an overview of the history of Indo- Sri Lanka trade links and the birth and the conceptualization of the ILBFTA and highlights the positive outcomes of the Agreement. The study further brings out the negative outcomes and problematic areas that have caught the attention of the trade negotiators, while exposing the steps taken and progress made in moving the FTA towards a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
