“The time has come to do justice for the least developed countries”, says the Secretary General

“Countries that have less need more support, and they need it now. They represent one in eight people on the planetbut their countries are trapped in vicious circles that make development difficult, if not impossible,” said the General secretary of the United Nations in Doha, Qatar.

Heads of state and government from some of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable countries met today, just ahead of the opening of the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC5), to be held in the capital of Qatar from March 5 to 9. The summit of those countries is held every ten years, but in 2021 it was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In Doha, government leaders and other stakeholders will assess the implementation of the Istanbul Program of Action, adopted in that Turkish city in 2011, and mobilize additional international support and action for the world’s 46 least developed countries.

financial system for the rich

In his welcoming remarks to the Summit of the Least Developed Countries, the UN chief stressed that the cost of living is rising due to the war in Ukraine, which has driven up energy and food prices. This, combined with the effects of the conflict, drought, famine and extreme poverty, has generated a environment of more and injustice.

“Winding this storm requires massive and sustained investment,” Guterres explained, stressing that the global financial system was designed by rich countries, “largely for their benefit.” In the absence of effective debt relief, least developed countries are forced to spend an increasing share of government revenue on debt service. And countries that move to middle-income status will lose the specific benefits of least-developed countries, which “becomes a punishment, not a reward,” Guterres reasoned.

a moment of justice

“We cannot allow countries to fall back down the development ladder after working so hard to climb it. In the midst of these injustices, the United Nations is working with you to develop transition strategies, based on country-specific support”, he pointed out.

To achieve this, the Doha Agenda for Action, the roadmap adopted in March 2022 for the least developed countries to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)), includes an online university, a food storage system, and an international investment support center.

In addition, the so-called SDG stimulus package, released in February, also proposes increase financing for sustainable development, address the high cost of debt and expand emergency funding.

New and sensible ways of measuring countries’ economies are also needed, for example, to develop lending criteria that go beyond gross domestic product, the Secretary-General added.

Regarding the conference that will begin tomorrow, he considered that it should be a “moment of justice” for the least developed countries: “Let’s work together to provide new avenues of support to his people. Let’s make history, ”she emphasized.

Real work, not just talk

The Summit of the Least Developed Countries was opened by Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera, President of Malawi and Chairman of the Group of those nations.

Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a Gross Domestic Product per capita of $639 in 2021, according to the world Bank. Like many other least developed countries, poverty and malnutrition are widespread in this sub-Saharan African country, with more than half the population living below the poverty line. Malawi is also facing the effects of climate change, with increased floods and droughts causing further damage to crops and livelihoods.

In his speech, President Chakwera stressed that the unique global challenges and multilateral obstacles facing the least developed countries cannot be “overcome by any of us alone”, and that “most nations abandon multilateralism and they close in on themselves, they turn their backs on the human brotherhood. We must resist that temptation!” he cried.

“We are not gathered here just to talk.”, added the president, “we have real work to do and results to produce. Together we will offer an online university; an investment promotion regime; a food stock-keeping mechanism; a crisis mitigation and resilience building mechanism; a graduation support package that ensures a smooth transition from least developed country status,” he detailed.

Chakwera encouraged all development partners to “do their part to remove the obstacles that stand in the way of these countries.”

program of the week

Dignitaries participating in today’s Summit discussed how to collectively address shared challenges and find substantive solutions. They also provided clear guidance on how to ensure the effective and timely implementation of the goals, commitments and outcomes set out in the Doha Agenda for Action for the decade 2022-2031 and the Doha Political Declaration.

In the coming days, world leaders will meet with the private sector, civil society, parliamentarians and youth to promote the latest thinking, generate new commitments of support and stimulate the implementation of agreements under the Doha Agenda for Action.

The conclave is expected to announce specific initiatives and concrete results that address the specific challenges of the least developed countries and support the implementation of the Doha Program of Action.

High-level political engagement will be critical for the LDC5 Conference to build momentum and forge renewed multiple alliances.

UN News/Anold Kayanda

Delegates participating in the Least Developed Countries Youth Forum in Doha, Qatar.

The commitment of young people

Within the framework of this Saturday’s meeting, three forums for the private sector, youth and parliamentarians took place.

In the afternoon, dozens of delegates participated in the first Least Developed Countries Youth Forum, representing more than 226 million young people from those 46 nations. In that Forum, young people They shared their ideas and proposed solutions.

Hamza Abdiwahab, a young delegate from Somalia, told UN News that political instability is a common problem in the least developed countries in his region, affecting many aspects related to the quality of education and poverty.

According to the UN, 24 of the 46 least developed countries have active conflicts as of 2019. Three out of four of these nations live in conflict and post-conflict situations.

“I think that we, as young people, We must participate in decision making so that we can have at least political stability and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in the next seven years,” Hamza said.

The young people discussed a range of development issues that affect both them and their countries, including education and skills development, health, employment, climate change, peace and security, human rights and migration. .

The Forum adopted the Youth Declaration entitled “For All Generations”, which expresses the commitment of young people to contribute to a better future in the least developed countries of the world and beyond.

The Youth Declaration is the result of a series of consultations with youth from the 46 least developed countries and will be presented to world leaders at the LDC5 conference next week.

What is a least developed country?

Nations classified by the UN as Least Developed Countries exhibit the lowest indicators of socioeconomic development.

The following 46 countries were listed by the UN in March 2023 as Least Developed:

• Africa (33): Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania , Mozambique, Niger, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and Zambia.
• Asia (9): Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Nepal, East Timor and Yemen.
• Caribbean (1): Haiti
• Peaceful (3): Kiribati, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu