Winter 2012

UN OFFICE OF THE HIGHREPRESENTATIVE FOR THE LEAST DEVELOPEDCOUNTRIES, LANDLOCKEDDEVELOPING COUNTRIESAND SMALL ISLANDDEVELOPING STATES

New High Representativecharts a vision forsustainable developmentfor LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS

2 Winter 2012

Contents Winter 2012

Special featureInterview with Acharya

MEDIAGLOBAL NEWS is an independent international media organization, based in the United Nations,creating awareness in the global media on social justice and development issues in the world’s leastdeveloped countries. MediaGlobal News is headquartered in New York with offices in the United NationsSecretariat. With a strong focus on the global South, MediaGlobal News disseminates news storiesglobally on economic development, global health, food security and the impact of climate change ondeveloping countries.

The Commitment is published in cooperation with the United Nations Office of the High Representativefor Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States. Forinformation, contact us at:

Bureau ChiefNosh Nalavala

Managing EditorKevin Huyge

Assistant EditorMadeleine Kuhns

CorrespondentsLauren LavittToni Bacala

Larkin GallagherYvonne Borkhur

CoordinatorRicardo Dunn

UNITED NATIONSDag Hammarskjold

Library Building, L-221 KNew York, NY 10017

3Newly appointed High Representativeunderscores his priorities

3 Newly-appointed High Representative underscores hispriorities for LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS

UN-OHRLLS Advocacy and Outreach Officer, Ricardo Z. Dunninterviews the Under Secretary-General and High Representative forthe LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS, Gyan Chandra Acharya

12 Emerging countries are sharing their prosperity with LDCsJean-Francis Régis Zinsou, the Permanent Representative of Benin to the United Nations in conversation with MediaGlobal News BureauChief Nosh Nalavala

15 LDC Portal – A tool for LDCs toward graduationAna Luiza Cortez, United Nations’ Chief of the Committee forDevelop ment Policy Secretariat, in conversation with MediaGlobal’sBureau Chief Nosh Nalavala

www.mediaglobal.org 609.529.6129 media@mediaglobal.org

Education has become a major push in post-conflict

least developed countries .

Interviews

7 South Sudan: The Challenges of a Young Nation

8 The Road to the Ten-Year Review Conference for LandlockedDeveloping Countries

10 Post-2015 Development Agenda

14 Preparations for the Third International Conference on SmallIsland Developing States, 2014

17 UN-OHRLLS actively participates in the climate changeprocess at COP-18

18 LDCs play a prominent role in General Assembly Deliberations

20 Best Practices

Also in this issue

3Winter 2012

Newly-appointed High Representativeunderscores his priorities for LDCs,LLDCs and SIDS

UN-OHRLLS Advocacyand Outreach Officer,Ricardo Z. Dunninterviews the UnderSecretary-General andHigh Representative forthe LDCs, LLDCs andSIDS, Gyan ChandraAcharya

Ricardo Z. Dunn A few monthsafter assuming the post of UnderSecretary-General and HighRepresentative for the LDCs, LLDCs andSIDS, what is your initial assessment ofwhere these groups of countries stand inrelation to their development efforts?

USG Gyan C. Acharya Generallyspeaking, there has been incrementalprogress across the board within thesegroups of countries whether it is in thefield of human and social development orgeneral economic growth. Morespecifically, evidence points to areduction of the general level of povertyin many of these countries, some ofwhich have also made impressive gainstowards achieving specific MDGs, relatedto child and maternal mortality, educa -tion, gender empowerment andsanitation.

But uneven progress, persistence ofextreme poverty and hunger andgrowing inequality is a matter ofconcern to us all. Their continuedvulnerability to internal and externalshocks including new and emergingchallenges, such as climate change andrecurrent food crises, and globalvolatility have hampered their speedystructural transformation. Theinternational community is aware of theneed for capacity enhancement,institution building and resources forrapid and sustained progress in all theareas in these vulnerable countries.

I should also point out that thereremains a great deal of concern aboutthe fundamental structural con straintsand lack of inclusive and higher level of

growth, which is indispensable to breakthe vicious circle of poverty andunderdevelop ment in many of thesecountries. This is particularly importantas they start from a low baseline. Thosein conflict or in post conflict situationsface further institutional capacity andstability- related challenges.

The Istanbul Programme of Action(IPoA) for LDCs adopted at the FourthUN Conference in 2011 has looked at thechallenges of the LDCs in a holisticmanner and has come out with aforward looking, ambitious andcomprehensive outcome document as aglobal consensus on their challenges andopportunities. It has also called for astrong and enhanced global partnershipfor development of the LDCs. It hasrightly recognised that development andprogress of the people in LDCs in today’sglobalised and integrated world is notonly a moral imperative, but that it isalso important for strengthening long-term stability, peace and security at theglobal level. Furthermore, it stressesmutual accountability, which means thatnational will and leader ship for inclusiveand sustainable development would be ascritical as coherent and enhanced globalsupport measures for LDCs.

A key issue that remains vital to the LDCdevelopment agenda is structuraltransformation through buildingproductive capacity includinginfrastructure and energy, human andsocial development, and buildingresilience. We would like to see the LDCsmoving in that direction with a view to

meeting the criteria for grad ua tion fromthe LDC status at the earliest.

We have seen that several LDCs havestarted to align their development planswith the priority areas of action in theIPoA to spur sustainable development.Needless to say, it is imperative that thisprocess receives not only broad supportbut strong political backing at thehighest level. It is equally encouragingto see that development partners and theUnited Nations System have also startedto integrate the provisions of the IPoAinto work programmes and theirrespective development cooperationframeworks. We are closely monitor ingimplementation of the action-plan toensure that we all move in tandem tohave the maximum impact on the lives ofpeople in LDCs.

These are some good signs of progress,but we cannot escape the present realitywhich is the recogni tion that the globaleconomic system is under enormouspressure. In particular, traditional donorcountries continue to face seriousdifficulties in terms of growth,employment and fiscal balances. Therecent decline, in real terms, in overseasdevelopment assistance (ODA),continued deadlock in the Doha Roundof trade negotia tions and a decrease inthe flow of foreign direct investment areof course matters of major concern to all.

I must, however, add that it isencouraging to see that despite domestic hardships, one bright spot in

INTERVIEW

continued on page 4

4 Winter 2012

development cooperation is that somekey donors have maintained or increasedsupport to LDCs, even though thecollective development assistancechannelled to the LDCs as a percentageof GNI slightly reduced in 2011. We will,of course, strengthen our advocacyefforts to urge global partners not toreduce the allocation of ODA to theLDCs, as they are disproportionatelyaffected by a myriad of challenges, andare highly dependent upon officialdevelopment assistance for promotingtheir core development efforts. On traderelated issues, we are glad that LDCs areon the expansionary phase of the volumeof trade, even though there remainsmuch room for improvement to reflectthe full potential of LDCs in terms oftheir share of international tradethrough enhanced market access andbuilding supply side capacity.

Let me now turn to the situation oflandlocked developing countries(LLDCs).

Due to their inherent geographicaldifficulties related to lack of direct accessto seaborne trade, the LLDCs findthemselves on a disadvantageddevelopment path. That is compound edby the remoteness from majorinternational markets, small domesticmarkets that are highly vulnerable toexternal shocks, cumbersome transitprocedures, high transport andtransaction costs and inadequatetransport infrastructure. Thesechallenges not only affect their economicgrowth, but have major ramifications forsocial and environmental aspects ofdevelop ment, including povertyreduction and the achievement of theMDGs . As a result many of the LLDCsare also among the poorest countries inthe world. There are many studies whichhave shown that landlockedness reducesGDP growth in these countries by 1.5 to2 percent annually.

The United Nations Conference convenedin 2003 in Almaty, Kazakhstan adoptedthe Almaty Programme of Action toaddress their special needs andchallenges especi ally in five priorityareas that include fundamental transitpolicy issues; infrastructuredevelopment and maintenance;international trade and trade facilitation;international support measures andimplementation and review.

While they have made progress ineconomic growth collectively, and trade

Interview with Acharyacontinued from page 3

has increased in general, there is a bigchallenge to many of the LLDCs withless resources to build productivecapacity, diversify their economic base,and promote human development andget due benefit from globalisation andglobal markets due to high transit costs,inadequate infrastructure and delays.This has severely undermined theirdevelopment potentials.

The 10-year Review Conference on theImplementation of the Almaty Pro -gramme of Action to be convened in2014 as decided by the United NationsGeneral Assembly provides a goodopportunity for the internationalcommunity to strengthen its partner -ship and support for LLDCs. TheConference will undertake a compre -hensive appraisal of the imple men tationof the Almaty Programme of Action,share best practices and lessons learned,and identify obstacles and constraintsencountered as well as actions andinitiatives needed to overcome them. As it will have the participation of allLLDCs, transit countries anddevelopment partners and institu tions,the conference will formulate and adopta new development partnershipframework for the next decade tosupport the LLDCs to improve theirintegration into international markets,and achieve increased and sustainedeconomic growth that is crucial for thebetterment of the lives of the people inLLDCs.

Now, talking about the small islanddeveloping states (SIDS). Theirfundamental challenge has beenenvironment and development. TheBarbados Programme of Actions and theMauritius Strategy (MSI) brought forththeir vulnerabilities to the global stage.This was also evident from the Rio+20conference outcome. SIDS’ vulnerabilitieslargely stem from their narrow resourcebase and markets which deprives themof the benefits of economies of scale;high cost of energy, and infrastructurebecause of distance, little resilience tonatural disasters and fragile naturalenviron ments. Many of these areinherent SIDS vulnerabilities. As aresult, SIDS in general have not achievedsustained and high levels of economicgrowth. Furthermore, exposure to globalenvironmental challenges of most SIDShave worked against efforts towardssustainable develop ment and improvingthe livelihoods of their citizens in asustained and inclusive manner. Sea-level rise and ocean acidification arequestioning their very survival andlong-term development of the people whoare dependent upon marine resourcesfor food and livelihood. Therefore

climate change issues and the ecosystemof the oceans are of primary importanceto them.

In the face of these challenges, SIDShave made efforts to build resilience andpromote sustainable development,including through raising awarenessand mainstreaming sustainabledevelopment principles into nationaldevelopment strategies, establishingprotected areas, including marine,coastal and terrestrial, with strongleadership in protecting biodiversity,adopting strategies for promotingrenewable energy.

In order to comprehensively look at thechallenges as well as opportun ities of theSIDS and create a coherent globalpartnership framework to deal withtheir issues in a holistic manner, we arefocusing on the 2014 ThirdInternational Conference on SIDS to beconvened in Samoa. A series of nationaland regional preparations will beconvened in 2013. It is very importantthat it is being held before the initiationof the post 2015 development agenda aswell as the before the deadline of aclimate change agreement by 2015. The2014 conference will involve assessmentof the MSI, a call for renewed politicalcommitment, and strengthening ofglobal partnership. SIDS will continue todepend on the enhanced support of theinternational community to meetcurrent internationally agreed goals andfuture targets. It is incumbent upon theinternational community to make surethat the concerns and expectations ofone of the most vulnerable groups likeSIDS are taken into account in the globaldevelop ment process in an effectivemanner.

RD You were closely involved in the2010 Millennium Development Goalsmid-term review process and the UnitedNations Conference on SustainableDevelopment (Rio+20), held in Rio deJaneiro, Brazil. How do you see theseconferences from the perspective of thedevelopment process?

GA Both the MDGs and Rio+20processes are important for all, butparticularly for the vulnerable countries,because of the enormity of theirstructural challenges and capacityconstraints. All of these countries haveabundant human and natural resourcesand great develop ment potential whichthey would like to realise with thesupport and cooperation of the globalcommunity. What is important aboutthese global conferences is that theyhave successfully focused our attentionon the most critical development

5Winter 2012

problems that our contemporary societyfaces in an inclusive and unified manner.Such a focus is essential to inspire andmobilize global as well as nationalactions to rapidly address these issues ina spirit of global partnership and multi-stakeholder approach. In the earlytwenty- first century with so many path-breaking innovations andenormous global prosperity around theworld, the people in the vulnerablecountries should not go throughtraditional historical developmentprocesses while being mired in poverty.They should be able to leapfrog into anew equitable and sustainabledevelopment path and thus rapidlyescape from the poverty trap.

The MDGs have a great focus on humandevelopment side, which is critical forthe development process of any country.MDGs have helped the formulation andimplementation of effective collaborativeaction for fighting poverty, saving lives,promo ting education, ensuring genderempowerment and its mainstreaminginto development process. Some of theMDGs have been met at the globalaggregate level which is an encour agingsign for all. However, the vulnerablecountries will not meet many of theMDGs. Therefore, we need to consolidatecollaboration to complete the unfinishedagenda and at the same time setobjectives and targets to cope with thenew and emerging issues that arethreatening our common future. Thenew global development paradigm needsto prioritize these most vulnerablegroups of countries with a view tosupporting them in their efforts to getout of poverty traps on a sustainablebasis with strong, inclusive andsustainable growth. It also needs topromote sustainable use of our naturalresources to ensure a better future forthe posterity and build resilience forlong-term sustainable development inthe broadest sense. This leads us to theRio+20 and Sustainable DevelopmentGoals (SDGs). It has rightly put povertyalleviation at the centre of sustainabledevelopment and has called for a holisticand integrated approach to sustainabledevelopment by promo ting social equity,economic growth and environmentalprotection in a coherent manner.

We are all working on the twin tracks of post-2015 development agenda andthe SDGs. We are trying to support these processes along three pillarsnamely social-human development,economic growth-productive capacity,environment-climate change, with anoverarching perspective of eradicatingpoverty through strengthenedinternational development partner ship.

Such a comprehensive approach cancontribute to effectively addressing thechallenges of millions of people leftbehind by the forces of globalization. Indoing so, we are working closely withthe Member States, UN systemorganizations, private sector, civilsociety and academia.

RD You have given us the broad sweepof the status of the vulnerable countriesand the global conferences to addressdevelopment challenges. Can youelaborate further on the current globaldevelopment discourse including thedevelopment of SDGs and post 2015development agenda from the point ofview of the vulnerable countries?

GA This is a very important issue thatyou have raised. All the vulnerablegroups of countries have their ownsituation-specific challenges, which havebeen captured by the respective outcomedocuments emanating from thededicated UN conferences. Theirimplementation is critical to ensurefocussed attention and support forprogress and development in thesecountries. But to fully grasp theirprospects, we also have to look at theoverarching global developmentarchitecture. As I have said earlier, ifyou look at the MDGs, all thesevulnerable countries have madesubstantial progress in meeting many ofthe MDGs, however, as a group they areamong those which are farthest behindothers in meeting these goals. That begsa question. How do you deal with thepersistence and severity of some of theirchallenges? How do you look at thestructural difficulties in these countries?Therefore, we are all trying to analyse,monitor and evaluate the specificconstraints in these countries andaccelerate the progress and increaseimpacts with targeted and intensifiedactivities. In the remaining years until2015, we all would have to work toaccelerate our efforts particularly inthese countries to ensure greaterprogress in meeting these goals. Thenthe international community should seewhere we all stand and decide how todeal with the unfinished agenda bybuilding on them.

Therefore one part of that post 2015development agenda has to deal with theunfinished agenda. But the equallyimportant aspect of the developmentchallenges today has been thesustainability of our development modeland rapid depletion of our naturalcapital. While poverty eradication has tobe the central theme of developmentnarrative, there is a need to look at itand environmental sustainability in a

holistic way. They are not mutuallyexclusive; they should not be made so.They are in fact mutually reinforcingand that is palpable to many of thepeople especially those living in ruraland coastal areas and near the sea, whointeract intensely with nature on a dailybasis in these countries. Water energyand food security are inextricable linked,so are conservation of biodiversity andother natural resources. They are allunder stress. Therefore, humandevelopment, inclusive economic growthand environmental sustainability shouldbe taken up in an integrated manner,keeping the fundamental interests of thepeople and planet together. People arepart of the natural eco-system. A greengrowth strategy rooted in povertyalleviation will have to be at the front ofthe post 2015 development agenda. Themost important thing is that this newagenda must be able to fully capture theconcerns and interests of the mostvulnerable countries and be responsiveto the long term and sustainabledevelopment needs of the people.Because they are at the receiving end ofthe unsustainable patterns ofdevelopment, the goals have to beintegrated, measureable and ambitious,which we should be able to achieve withstrong international support measures,particularly for those lacking capacityand resources. We should also look atthe current development models of allcountries, as a development modelanywhere affects the prospect ofdevelopment everywhere in an ever moreintegrated and globalised world with acommon global space and public goodsto be shared by all.

RD Circling back to donor support,what is your opinion on the currentstate of affairs given the global belt-tightening underway? More specifically,do you think that the commitmentsmade at the international level will befulfilled?

GA The economic woes of the developedcountries are spilling over to all thecountries through reduced revenues, aweaker demand for their exports andheightened volatility in capital flows andcommodity prices. Contrary to earlypredications, the reality is that thevulnerable countries have not beenimmune to the impacts of the crisis. Thismeans that the outlook for this groupneeds to take seriously the very realpossibility of a more pronounceddeterioration in the global economicenvironment, which would of coursenegatively affect all exporters throughfalling terms of trade, reduced foreign

continued on page 6

6 Winter 2012

direct investment and trade barriers,while others may be affected by fallingworker remittances. A decline in aidflows also may limit external financingoptions for LDCs and others in thefuture.

But let me also stress the decline in ODAappears to be a temporary phenomenoncaused by the difficulties faced by donorcountries. Recently, the internationalcommunity has reaffirmed its ODAcommitment in the outcome document ofthe United Nations Conference onSustainable Development in their effortsto achieve sustainable development andalso in the context of effectivelyimplementing the Istanbul Programmeof Action. In my own contacts with thehigh officials of donor countries, I get assurances of continued strongsupport, because of their particularvulnerabilities. These are importantsignals that the development partnerswill do their part in honouring theircommitments. We will continue to worktowards that direction, because of thepositive impacts of ODA on people invulnerable countries and their continueddependence on it for major developmentworks.

RD Eradicating poverty and bringingall the vulnerable countries into themainstream of the sustainabledevelopment process seems to be a verydaunting task. What would be theapproaches of your Office towardsattaining these goal? In short, whatwould be the focus of UN-OHRLLS in thenear future?

GA The challenges are indeed dauntingand the ambition quite high. But wecannot be less ambitious when so manypeople are trapped in grinding povertyand the vulnerable countries are facedwith deep structural constraints andnew and emerging challenges includingenvironmental degradation and climatechange. Perpetuation of deprivation inthe midst of plenty is a recipe fordisaster. Ambition helps us to set ourgoals clearly and focus our minds. Thatis how the international community hasalways looked at these issues. That iswhy the United Nations was created inthe first place to work for an equitable,peaceful and prosperous global order forall based on some fundamentalprinciples, even in the aftermath ofunprecedented devastations of theSecond World War. That is why peaceand security, development and human

Interview with Acharyacontinued from page 5

rights have now been agreed as the threeprinciple pillars of the United Nationsand the new global order. We all owe it tothe people living in these countries insuch a difficult situation. They havepinned high hopes on the internationalcommunity and they should rightly doso. Therefore, while setting our eyeshigh on an ambitious agenda, we have tobuild on and take pragmatic steps on theground and work towards these goals.We have to go through the valleys andtroughs and cross many mountains toreach the shining city upon a hill. TheUnited Nations represents and shouldrepresent the voice of all, but more so ofthe most vulnerable. It is in thesecountries that the UN is continuouslytested for more and better delivery.

The Secretary-General and theleadership at the UN are committed tobringing about long term sustainablechange in the lives of the mostvulnerable people around the world. Assuch, sustainable development has beendefined as the first priority of the UN.

My office is going to focus on thefollowing issues. First, the UN-OHRLLSwill intensify its work on following upon the effective implementation of thegroup specific outcomes of the UNconferences. They are IPOA for LDCs,APOA for LLDCs and BPOA and MSI forSIDS. IPOA has to be implemented by thecountries concerned, developmentpartners and countries in the souththrough integration into thedevelopment process. Similarly, we arepreparing for the LLDCs and SIDSconferences in 2014, and as suchadvocacy of their concerns andestablishment of a new framework ofdevelopment duly reflecting their issuesand interests, will also be a majorpriority for this office.

Second, the Office will intensify itscoordinating role within the UnitedNations system and outside with otherfinancial and trading institutions toeffectively pursue the issues of interestto the vulnerable countries .We wouldstrongly encourage them to give duepriority to the vulnerable countries intheir programmes of action.

Third, it will promote the interest andconcerns of these vulnerable countriesby mainstreaming their concerns andprincipal issues into the globaldevelopment agenda. Ensuring propervisibility of their concerns andarticulation of their interests in thelarger global development discoursealone will ensure coherence in the globalpolicy setting and effectiveness ofdevelopment impact in these countries.

Fourth, advocacy for comprehensiveglobal support measures for thesecountries will be another critical work ofthis Office. These groups of countriesare most dependent on the externalsupport, because of the high level ofpoverty in proportion to theirpopulation, huge capacity constraintsand lack of financial resources to dealwith their enormous developmentchallenges. ODA remains a criticalresource base for these countries.Besides ODA, they are also lookingtowards all sources of financing to meetthe growing challenges, both traditionaland the new ones. A comprehensiveapproach to the resources will be criticalto them, which means we will be lookingat ODA, trade, investment, technologyadaptation, remittances, domesticresource mobilisation and innovativefinancing in a comprehensive manner.

Finally, the Office will ensure that wefacilitate the transmission andarticulation of global policies to thenational policy makers and projection oftheir national experiences at the globallevel. That is a very important process inthese complex times, when global issuesare increasingly becoming dominant insetting the contours of both developmentchallenges and opportunities.

Mutual accountability demands thatnational will and leadership with pro-poor development policies andprogrammes are critical. It also demandsstronger support from the globalcommunity in a spirit of solidarity andpartnership. At the end of the day, in thehighly interdependent world of today,international development process is inthe fundamental national interest ofdeveloped countries and emergingcountries, as it is of the vulnerablecountries.

Therefore in carrying out our mandatedactivities, we will be working togetherwith all and look forward to a strongsupport and cooperation of allstakeholders for sustainabledevelopment in these vulnerablecountries. It is through the collectivecontributions of governments,parliamentarians, private sector, civilsociety, academia and media that we will be able to achieve our common goalsof shared prosperity around the worldand, in particular, in vulnerablecountries.

7Winter 2012

Women in South Sudan rise up to the challenge of

building a young nation. John Ferguson/Oxfam

South Sudan: The Challenges of aYoung Nation

A Profile by Toni Bacala,Correspondent,MediaGlobal News

Having gained their much sought-after independence in July 2011,South Sudan is now the world’syoungest nation. Though land-locked,the River Nile runs across its fertileterrains, and the country boasts ofsome 1.7 billion barrels of oil reservesand other natural resources that havebeen both roots of economic promiseand civil disputes.

South Sudan has been at war with itsnorthern neighbour since 1955, whenmodern Sudan broke free from itsEgyptian and British colonizers. Afterdecades of civil wars, the north-southconflict ended with the ComprehensivePeace Agreement (CPA) in 2005,which included a self-determinationclause for the Sudanese people todecide amongst themselves if SouthSudan should remain a part of unitedSudan. In 2011, a referendumdeclared South Sudan an independentstate.

In spite of South Sudan’s peacefulsecession from Sudan, clashes over oilrevenues and transit fees forced SouthSudan to shut down oil productionearly in 2012. While South Sudanproduces the bulk of the regions’ oiloutput, its landlocked geographymakes it dependent on northern

export lines. The disputes have putthe country’s economy and security ina tight bind as 98 percent of govern -ment revenues come from oil export.

Its oil reserve aside, South Sudan’sequatorial climate and generousrainfall make it one of Africa’s mostfertile agricultural regions. Accordingto US AID, 90 percent of South Sudancould be ecological zones. However,only 5 percent of the country’s 30million hectares of arable land isbeing utilized for agriculture.

The majority of the population relieson subsistence agriculture, whileother food supplies are imported fromneighbouring countries. Last year,severe flooding and internalcommunal violence have displacedover 400,000 people, exacerbatinglocal food production and availability.

The natural disasters and unexpectedpopulation movement brought alongdiseases that upset local livestock,staple crops and water resources.Nonetheless, South Sudan’s potentialfor agriculture-based business,particularly in the production ofcereal, oilseeds and cash crops, offergreat opportunities for local farmers.

The international community has setits eye on boosting South Sudan’sproductive capacity. The InternationalFertilizer Development Center (IFDC)has initiated programmes on usingmodern agricultural technologies, anddeveloping market-oriented strategiesto transform subsistence farming intoprofitable agribusiness. The UnitedNations Development Programme(UNDP) has assisted local govern -ments in putting in place efficient taxsystems to increase non-oil revenues.

At the onset of 2013, South Sudanwas off to an optimistic start with adecline in inflation to 25 percent from41 percent in 2012. Also this year theFood and Agriculture Organization(FAO) will implement a programme toenhance the quality of farming seedsand ease food security challenges. Todiversify its economy after thedisruption in oil production, South

Sudan ventured into microfinance andmining of mineral reserves such asgold, uranium and copper.

But South Sudan’s path towardseconomic stability remains curtailedby the tight grip of poverty. Over halfof its 9 million population lives inrural poverty. About 75 percent havepoor access to health services andbasic education. Infant mortality rateis high due to malnutrition anddiseases such as malaria andpneumonia. Cross-border tensionshave endangered a refugee populationcomprised mostly of women andchildren.

Last December 2012, South Sudan’sadmission into the United Nation’sgroup of Least Developed Countries(LDCs) has kindled hopes to betterfacilitate the young nation’s struggleto be fully independent, economicallyand politically. Years of violence have taken a toll on South Sudan’seconomic and social milieu. Enduring solutions are needed for economic investment andhumanitarian efforts to besustainable, especially for the futureof its large young population.

Increased supply and access to safe water are

urgent needs for the future of South Sudanese

children.UNDP South Sudan/Brian Sokol

8 Winter 2012

The Road to the Ten-Year ReviewConference for Landlocked DevelopingCountries

Challenges facing theLLDCs

In 1776, Adam Smith observed that theinland parts of Africa and Asia werethe least economically developed areasof the world. Two hundred and thirty-five years later, Paul Collier, Professorof Economics at Oxford University, inhis book: “The Bottom Billion”, paintedthe same stark picture stating that“being landlocked and resource-scarcein a bad neighbor hood makesdevelopment harder”.

Why do landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) face such persistentchallenges? Smith argued that, due tothe difficulty of trade, geographicallyremote areas have difficulty realizinggains to specialization and associatedbenefits. He based his analysis on thedifficulty of land transportation overgreat distances –a problem that, despitehuge technological advances remains

today. High transportation coststypically place landlocked developingcountries at a distinct disadvantagerelative to their coastal neighbourswhen competing in global markets.

Collier argued that landlocked, resource-scarce countries have no single obvious winning growth strategy that will take them to middle-income status, so they need to be ingenious, in particular by promotinggood trade policies both at national andregional levels, particularly withneighbouring governments.

The United Nations recognizes 31 landlocked developing countries,widely dispersed around the globe: 15 are located in Africa, 12 in Asia, 2 in Central and Eastern Europe, and 2in Latin America. Despite their locationon four different continents, all LLDCsshare common problems of geographicremoteness (1606 km on average fromthe sea) and no direct maritime access,

implying dependence on trade andtransport systems in neighbouring andcoastal countries.

While the globalization process hasunprecedentedly interlinkedeconomies, landlocked developingcountries seem to be marginalized inthe global markets. They are less integrated into the global economythan the average of other developingcountries. The proportion ofmerchandise exports of LLDCs to thetotal world exports has remained low atjust 1.2 per cent. The lack of access tothe sea and remoteness from major markets, inadequate transit facilities,cumbersome customs and bordercrossings procedures amongst otherresults in high transport and tradetransaction costs, undermining theirefforts to build their productive capacities.

Major bottlenecks prevent the flow of trade

in the LLDCs.

9Winter 2012

The United Nations supportto landlocked developingcountries

The United Nations recognized LLDCsas one of the group of countries withspecial needs and challenges, andLLDCs have been on the Agenda of theGeneral Assembly of the UN since1957 when Resolution 1028 (XI) onthis issue was adopted by consensus.Since then, it has been on the agendaof the United Nations system-wide, including the General Assembly andother UN bodies, regional organiza -tions, development partners and international organizations.

In 2001, the UN Secretary-General established the Office of the High Representative for Least DevelopedCountries, Landlocked DevelopingCountries and Small Island Develop -ing States with the overall objective to assist and support the countries in special situation, includinglandlocked developing countries.

In addition, to address the constraintsfacing landlocked developingcountries, the United Nationsorganized the first InternationalMinisterial Conference of Landlockedand Transit Developing Countries andDonor Countries and InternationalFinancial and Development Institu -tions on Transit TransportCooperation in Almaty, Kazakhstan,in August 2003. The Conferenceadopted the Almaty Programme ofAction and the Almaty MinisterialDeclaration.

The overarching goal of the AlmatyProgramme of Action was to fosterthe establishment of efficienttransport systems in all landlockeddeveloping countries based onmutually beneficial collaboration withtransit developing countries and withthe support of the developmentpartners. Five priority areas wereidentified, namely: 1) fundamentaltransit policy issues; 2) infrastructuredevelopment and maintenance; 3) international trade and tradefacilitation; 4) international supportmeasures, and; 5) implementation and review.

Progress achieved in theimplementation of theAlmaty Programme of Action

The landlocked developing countriescontinue to make notable progress inthe implementation of the priorityareas of the Almaty Programme ofAction, and the internationalcommunity strengthened its technicaland financial support. LLDCs as agroup recorded an average economicgrowth of 5.0 percent during theperiod 2003-2010. Furthermore,imports of goods and servicesincreased from $43 billion to $158billion from 2003 to 2010, and exportsof goods and services increased from$50 billion to $142 billion during thesame period. In addition, OfficialDevelopment Assistance (ODA)receipts to LLDCs more than doubledduring the period 2000-2010. ForeignDirect Investment (FDI) inflows toLLDCs increased since 2000, from $3 billion to $35 billion in 2011,nevertheless, LLDCs receive only 4.5 per cent of the total FDI flows fordeveloping countries and transitioneconomies, as recognized in the WorldInvestment Report 2012.

Although there has been someprogress in infrastructuredevelopment and maintenance,especially in the LLDCs of Asia, thepercentage of paved roads, theprincipal mode of transport, remainslow. Only 9 LLDCs have over 50 percent of their roads paved and 8 haveonly paved between 20 and 49 percent of them. According to researchby the World Bank, the challengeswith regard to transport infra -structure are not only physicaldeficits but also a lack of adequate softinfrastructure, mainly in logisticsservices. Markets need to be improvedalong with transport and transitcorridors.

The Road to the Ten-YearReview Conference

In 2012, in its Resolution 66/214, theUnited Nations General Assemblydecided to hold a comprehensive 10-year review conference of theAlmaty Programme of Action in 2014.The conference will be preceded bynational, regional and global, as well

as thematic preparations. In addition,intergovernmental preparatorycommittee sessions will be organizedprior to the conference.

The overall objectives of theConference will be to: undertake acomprehensive appraisal of theimplementation of the AlmatyProgramme of Action, identifyeffective international, regional, sub-regional and domestic policies inlight of the outcome of the appraisal,reaffirm the global commitment toaddressing the special developmentneeds and the challenges faced by thelandlocked developing countries, andmobilize additional internationalsupport measures and action infavour of the landlocked developingcountries.

The General Assembly designated the Office of the High Representativefor the Least Developed Countries,Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States(UN-OHRLLS), as the United Nationssystem-wide focal point for thepreparatory process. It has alsoinvited other United Nations systemorganizations and regional organiza -tions within their respectivemandates, to provide necessarysupport and actively contribute to thepreparatory review process and thecomprehensive 10-year reviewconference.

Preparatory processes have started. Inparticular, UN-OHRLLS has prepareda roadmap that highlights activities to be undertaken towards theconference. Two interagency meetingshave taken place – February 2012 inNew York and November 2012 inGeneva – to gather commitments bypartners regarding the organizationof pre-conference events, publications,regional review meetings, as well asto ascertain contributions to theprivate sector track of the conferenceand its main priority areas.

The Conference is expected to gather more than 1000 high-levelparticipants and experts fromlandlocked and transit developingcountries, and their developmentpartners, international organizations,including UN system organizations,international and financialinstitutions, private sectororganizations and academia.

9Winter 2012

10 Winter 2012

Post-2015 Development Agenda:Streamlining priorities of Least Developed Countries

The 49 least developed countries (LDCs)are among the most vulnerable MemberStates of the United Nations, due towidespread poverty, limited humancapital, vulnerability to external shocksand limited produc tive capacity. Onaverage they experienced relatively highGDP growth rates over the past decadeand made some progress towardsachieving the Millennium DevelopmentGoals, though less than countries in other groups.

In addition, much of this growth wasjobless and their economic structure hasbeen mostly stagnant. Therefore theirproduction and export structure is stillhighly concentrated, and they aredependent on aid. Their marginal ization in the global economy is exacerbated bygeographical handicaps, often includingsmall size and remoteness. Thus they aredisproportionally affected by the multiplecrises, especially high and volatile foodand energy prices and the effects ofclimate change.

LDCs and their special needs arehighlighted in the MillenniumDeclaration,1 where particular focus isgiven to market access, debt relief anddevelopment assistance. Con sequentlyODA to LDCs as well as duty-free marketaccess for LDCs are included in MDG 8.

The Istanbul Programme of Action (IPoA),which was adopted in 2011, aims atachieving graduation from the LDCcategory through reducing structuralvulnerabilities of LDCs and addressingnew challenges to development, with astrong focus on structural transformationand the development of productivecapacity. It reconfirms commitments toprovide market access and to allocate 0.15 – 0.2 percent of GNI in ODA to LDCs.

While the MDGs were successful infocusing attention on the poor and havecontributed to a greater focus on results,there are also a lot of challenges related toMDGs 1-7. These include the allocation ofa large proportion of ODA towards socialsectors at the expense of productivecapacity including in agriculture. Inaddition, issues of inequality, quality, andinter-sectoral synergies have been largelyneglected.

How can the newdevelopment partnershipgive priority to LDCs?

LDCs have been disproportionally affectedby the recent triple crises and theincreasing impact of climate change. Thishas exposed their specific vulnerabilities to

global shocks and natural disasters.Despite the special attention given toLDCs, they are among the groups thatrecorded the slowest progress towardsreaching the MDGs. High incidence ofpoverty — with over 50 percent of thepopulation living below $1 a day in LDCs—combined with high dependence onexternal finance and low capacity to copewith the related challenges highlightstheir vulnerability.

Thus the new global partnership needs toprioritize the LDCs with a view to supportthem in their efforts to leave their povertytraps. It also needs to focus on buildingresilience for long-term sustainabledevelopment in the broadest sense.

Another reason for focusing on LDCs isthe expected poverty dynamics for thecoming years. While a large number of thepoor currently live in middle-incomecountries, it is expected that within a fewdecades a much larger proportion of thepoor will live in LDCs. This is largelyattributable to their slower progresstowards poverty reduction and higherpopulation growth. Recent researchshows, that in a few decades absolutepoverty will again be concentrated in

LDC populations have struggled against a series

of crises, including a volatile spike in food prices.

11Winter 2012

low-income countries, mainly in LDCs.Reversing these trends requires scaling up of international support in favour of LDCs and fully imple menting thecommitments already made.

At the same time the developmentlandscape has changed with theemergence of new donors, includingfoundations, and an increasing role forSouth-South cooperation. Meanwhiledeveloping countries have become equallyimportant trading partners and investorsin the most vulnerable countries. Otherfinancial flows, including FDI andremittances have increased relative toODA, but for LDCs – unlike most othergroups of countries – ODA is still the mostimportant inflow of capital.

With respect to international supportmeasures it is important to note that mostLDCs are still highly aid dependent bothwith respect of the share of ODA ingovernment expenditure and in terms ofaccess to foreign exchange. For LDCs theshare of ODA in recipient country GNIwas 6.9 percent. For several countries thelevel of debt has also increased recentlyand thus they will need access to ODA anddebt relief for the foreseeable future.

However, progress with respect toimproving the quality of aid has been slowespecially with respect to fragmentation,use of recipient mechanisms andpredictability and needs to be accelerated.Thus a new development partnershipshould acknowledge the role of new actorsand flows including innovative financingbut also prioritise LDCs in the allocation of ODA. This could be done for examplethrough the use of the LDC criteria for aid allocation as agreed in the recentresolution on smooth transition(A/67/C.2/L.51).

In the area of trade the focus of target 8Bon duty free quota free market accessneeds to be revisited as preference erosionis likely to continue. In addition toimplementing the commitments related to trade preferences more focus should beput on non-tariff barriers, which oftenharm LDCs disproportionally (includingsimplification of rules of originrequirements), trade facilitation measures,as well as Aid for Trade. Access totechnology has also been recognised by the Millennium Declaration andsubsequently the IPoA as crucial forstructural transformation and as a cross-cutting issue relevant for all areas ofdevelopment from health and education to employment creation. However, therelated MDGs are quite weak andindustrial countries have focused more

on protecting intellectual property rightsthan on providing access to technology for vulnerable countries. Internationalcommitments in the area of trade andtechnology should be reflected in a newpartnership, including those from theIPoA.

Furthermore the issue of policy coherencefor development, which has long beenrecognised as crucial, needs to beaddressed more concretely. It needs toinclude global public goods like a crisis-prone international financial architectureto reduce the frequency of externalshocks. Likewise the voice andrepresentation of LDCs in multilateralinstitutions need to be increased.

For LDCs regional economic integrationand cooperation has a great potential forcreating new opportunities for trade,investment and production, throughimproved infrastructure and connectivity.Thus regional integration includingthrough South-South and triangularcooperation should be considered as one of the key development enablers. Theregional dimension could also link thenational to the global level in a newpartnership.

How can the newdevelopment agenda reflectthe priority concerns andissues of the LDCs?

There has been some agreement thatstructural transformation should be acornerstone of the post-2015 framework asa way to eradicate poverty in a sustainedmanner. This is especially important forLDCs, which are characterised bystructural deficiencies and vulnerabilities.While building on the existing MDGs andkeeping the strong focus on povertyreduction and the well being of people,there is the need to reorient prioritiesaway from compart mentalization in socialsectors into integration with developmentstrategies that seek to combine economicgrowth with employment creation andparticipatory development.

The fact that the MDG targets weremisinterpreted as national rather thanglobal goals meant that the failure of LDCsto reach most of the targets was almostunavoidable. Progress in a given area, forinstance education, typically follows a bellcurve trajectory of slow initial progress,followed by a period of acceleration andfinally another slowdown. Thus definingthe success of a country based on nationaltargets would provide a more fairinterpretation of success.

Productive capacity, which is the firstpriority but also a cross-cutting topic inthe IPoA needs to get higher priority in anew development framework. Its centralobjective to create decent jobs is crucial forachieving poverty reduction. Likewise afocus on agricultural development wouldalso contribute to reducing hunger andmalnutrition. In addition, many factorsthat could contribute to the increase inproductive capacity like infrastructure,access to energy, better quality ofeducation and access to technology couldalso lead to improvements in other sectorslike health. Furthermore the promotion ofgreen economy should be seen as one wayto increase productive capacity, attractinvestment and enter new markets. Thusit is also important to explicitly take intoaccount the interlinkages between sectorsand avoid a silo approach in the newdevelopment framework.

LDCs are among the countries mostaffected by climate change through a variety of effects from reducedagricultural productivity and depletedstocks of fish to increased frequency andimpact of natural disasters, higher costsfor resilience building (e.g. throughhigher costs for infrastructure and health services) and increasing migration,according to the World Bank report: Turn Down the Heat. In addition, climatechange poses a security threat. Thus thenew development agenda not only needs toensure increasing resilience of LDCs butalso focus on mitigating climate changeeffects.

Capacity building in all the areasmentioned above is crucial for asustainable development path in LDCs.This should include capacity forregulating different sectors, capacity fornegotiations with investors in extractiveindustries and land to generate higherrevenues and at the same time avoidnegative impacts on the population andthe environment. Likewise the capacityto reform the public sector, to increasedomestic revenues and to fight againstillicit capital flight needs to bestrengthened to achieve sustainabledevelopment.

Therefore, the Post-2015 DevelopmentAgenda should include a strongcommitment to address the special needs of LDCs, giving visible priority to addressing their specific challenges and building capacity to deal with them.Such a more comprehensive developmentagenda would also be conducive toincreasing policy coherence.

12 Winter 2012

Emerging countries are sharing theirprosperity with LDCs

Jean-Francis RégisZinsou, the PermanentRepresentative of Beninto the United Nations inconversation withMediaGlobal News BureauChief Nosh Nalavala

Nosh Nalavala Ambassador, whatis your agenda as the chair of theglobal LDC Group?

Jean-Francis Régis ZinsouThank you for giving me thisopportunity to exchange views withyou and your readers on the work ofthe LDC Coordination Bureau ofwhich I am the global chair. Thecoordination bureau is intended tobring the Member States of the groupof LDCs to develop a joint perspective,a joint front to common challenges.Our work is embedded in theimplementation process of the LDCProgramme of Action. We developedin May 2011 in Istanbul a newprogramme of action, which we callthe Istanbul Programme of Action forLDCs, the overarching goal of whichis to develop working methods andpolicies that can enable LDCs tograduate by 2020. That is the agenda:to help LDCs graduate and assistLDCs to put in place strategies thatcan help them to graduate.

NN I believe in 2007 Beninintroduced the “People-Centered

Framework.” What are its essentials,what did it do for Benin and can it beparlayed to other LDCs under yourleadership?

JFZ Benin was instrumental inpushing for a people-centeredapproach to development challengesbecause when you talk about thechallenges of LDCs, it’s about theliving conditions of the people, it’sabout the lack of opportunity, and it’sabout their vulnerabilities — theirvulnerabilities being the vulner -abilities of their country, theirchallenges being the challenges oftheir country. That’s why we continueto push for a human-centeredapproach to development.

NN How can this framework helpother LDCs?

JFZ Every LDC can take advantageof what is being done because themotto is to do more of what works,and Benin is in the lead. We try topromote an exchange of experienceswith other LDCs, and we benefit byworking on the basis of lessonslearned.

NN Can you refer to the outcome ofthe Istanbul Programme of Action andtell us how the implementation isprogressing?

JFZ The Istanbul Programme of Action is a comprehensiveprogramme, which is intended toreally tackle the challenges that the

LDCs face. It was devised through an assessment of the BrusselsProgramme of Action, which wasimplemented in the decade whichended with 2010. The implementationof the Istanbul Programme of Actionis being pushed forward throughmainstreaming in national strategiesand national policies because theassessment we made at the IstanbulConference and in the preparation ofthe Istanbul Conference thatgenerated the Istanbul Programme ofAction is that each LDC can makegreat leaps if it can maximize thepotential locally. This means thatwhen you are a country, you have toidentify the things in which you arethe best or the things that you can dobest. We call that in political analysis,‘cooperative advantage’. When youbuild your development on cooperativeadvantage, you have the chance tomake great strides; you have thechance to make a great leap forward.

NN As a follow-up, what newmeasures are you planning to initiatetowards strengthening theimplementation process?

JFZ We have a lot of initiativesgoing on. You cannot consider theimplementation process as separatefrom the ongoing global processes. Wewent to Istanbul, but just afterIstanbul we went to Rio, and wedeveloped a real vision ofsustainability on the importantprogrammes that we initiated inIstanbul. Now we need to generatesome kind of synergy, while buildingon those programmes. And this issomething that we’re working on. I am in a very favourable positiontowards such a challenge because I have been appointed as member of a group of 30 experts, which willdevelop sustainable developmentgoals. We have the chance to work insynergy to benefit from what is beingdone at a global level, and also toimplement what we have designed atIstanbul. What we have designed inIstanbul has a very specific newapproach — a new approach to focus

INTERVIEW

on capacity development on the basisof cooperative advantages.

NN Has South-South cooperationhelped Benin and how do you plan tonarrow the North-South divide?

JFZ South-South cooperation hashelped a lot and you cannot imaginehow grateful the whole LDCmembership is for emergingcountries, which are pushing to sharetheir prosperity with LDCs.

NN Which countries are youreferring to?

JFZ China is in the lead. India andBrazil are working hard on it. Thereis also a group of middle-incomecountries that are also very helpful in exchanging experiences with us.Something that we learned is that the LDCs have taken the lead in aproactive manner to really fill thegaps and weaknesses of the economiesthat are preventing us from takingthe great leap to development. We aredoing that now by developing South-South cooperation. How to bridge theNorth-South divide? We need to bringinvestment from the north andcombine it with knowledge from thesouth and with national policies ofLDCs generate new approaches ofdevelopment on the ground, whichcan mobilize people to participate indevelopment. One of the majorelements of the new developmentapproach that we devised in Istanbulis to have people get involved.

NN Talking about getting othersinvolved, while LDCs come under yourpurview as the chief of the LDCgroup, do you also nurture LLDCsand SIDS, many of them LDCs?

JFZ Of course. The IstanbulProgramme of Action is open andcomprehensive. A mountain countrydoes not have the same problems as acountry with flat lands where there isa lot of agricultural land available fordevelopment. We have a programmewhich opens avenues that countriescan make use of according to theirchallenges for both LLDCs, SIDS andLDCs in general. What we have is aprogramme that tackles challenges.We tackle them in a way that bringsin people. It’s centered on people. It’sintended to fill the gaps in policy andvulnerability. We have a framework,which is focused on addressing

vulnerabilities, which is focusing onmaximizing local capacity fordevelopment.

NN Can you talk a bit about theimpact of climate change on LDCs?What are LDCs, specifically Benin,doing towards adaptation andmitigation since your country facesincreasing problems of floods andcoastal erosion?

JFZ You see those issues are verydisruptive challenges because you aretalking about MillenniumDevelopment Goals, bringing water,securing food, but when floods come,everyone suffers in Benin we havefields close to the rivers and we candevelop rice production in those fields.But what if flood comes? Everythingis over-flooded. What we plan to do isbuild dams to protect those areas.Catalytic investments that can help us maximize the benefit that we have.We have coastal erosion, and we havebenefited from cooperation from Arab countries to build dams at theseashores to protect our shores andprevent erosion to take place. In thecity of Cotonou, large parts of the cityhave been ‘eaten by the waves’. When I say ‘eaten by the waves’, hotelresorts at the seashore have totallydisappeared because there wereinvestments that were made when the coastal origin was not so strongeroded those facilities. It’s a matter inwhich the international communityhas a stake, because if you don’tinvest to prevent such erosions, youwill generate a humanitarian crisisfor which more money will have to be spent.

NN Ambassador, as the chair of theLDC Group, what is your expectationof the international community?

JFZ The international communityhas to build on synergies, build onour local capacities and try togenerate more concrete results on theground for the people. We need togenerate concrete changes on theground for the people. For decades wehave been calling for strengthening ofthe transformation capacity of LDCs.If you grow tomatoes, and if you arenot able to transform it, then you havetomatoes for three months and thewhole year you are waiting for thenext cycle to grow tomatoes. But ifyou are able to transform it, you canconserve it, you can put it in a bottle,you can have tomatoes all year round.Those are things we are doing now,and China, India, and Brazil are veryinstrumental in empowering ourcountries with small facilities thathelp at local level.

NN Given the choice between ODAand increased investment, which onedo you think is more beneficial toLDCs in the future?

JFZ In the future, we need invest -ments. We need as much investmentas possible. We need to put in placestructures, institutions that can carrythose investments. ODA is creating anenabling environment throughinfrastructure assistance anddevelopment capacity building . . .those things are frameworkassistance. If you are enabled and youdon’t have the possibility to growfrom there, you don’t progress. Andthat has been the problem of ODAuntil now. It brings in improvement inliving conditions, but without power.We are working on empowering ourpeople, to build on those infra -structures, to build on those enablingassistance that we are receiving toreally generate growth, and generategrowth through investment.

“South-South cooperation has

helped a lot and you cannot

imagine how grateful the

whole LDC membership is for

emerging countries, which are

pushing to share their

prosperity with LDCs.”

14 Winter 2012

Last June, world leaders gathered inRio de Janeiro for the United NationsConference on Sustainable Develop -ment; commonly known as Rio+20.

It was at Rio+20 that the outcomedocument The Future We Want wasadopted and paragraph 180 called forthe convening of a Third InternationalConference on Small Island Develop -ing States (SIDS) in 2014. At Rio+20,the message regarding SIDS wasclear. They remain a “special case” forsustainable development in view oftheir unique and inherent vulner -abilities. With negotiations takingplace on the margins of the 67thGeneral Assembly debate in September2012, SIDS leaders agreed that theConference would take place in Apia,Samoa.

Though the exact date in 2014 is yetto be determined, the modalitiesresolution A/C.2/67/L.40 was adoptedby the Second Committee of theGeneral Assembly and sets out initialmodalities for the Conference and itspreparatory process. The modalitiesresolution as it stands, stipulates thatthe Conference will look to assess theprogress to date and any remaininggaps in the implementation of the

Barbados Programme of Action(BPoA) for the Sustainable Develop -ment of SIDS and its follow-upMauritius Strategy for the FurtherImplementation of the BPoA. (MSI)

The Conference will also aim to seek arenewed political commitment by allcountries to effectively address thespecial needs and vulnerabilities ofSIDS along with identifying new andemerging challenges and opportuni -ties for the sustainable development of SIDS. Moreover, the Conference will look towards strengtheningpartnerships between SIDS and theinternational community whilelikewise seeking new partnershipsthat would foster the sustainabledevelopment aspirations of SIDS.

On 21 November 2012, United NationsSecretary-General Ban Ki-moon nomi -nated Wu Hongbo, Under-Secretary-General (USG) for Economic andSocial Affairs, as the SecretaryGeneral for the Third InternationalConference on SIDS. Mr. Hongbo willwork closely with Mr. Gyan Acharya,USG and High Representative for the

Least Developed Countries, LandLocked Developing Countries andSmall Island Developing States andwith the wider UN system andregional entities to ensure a success -ful outcome to the 2014 Conference.

Climate change, food security, disasterrisk reduction, oceans, technologytransfer and securing durablepartnerships are at the forefront ofthe High Representative’s agenda, and indeed UN-OHRLLS’.

There remains the crucial need forinternational and bilateral donors aswell as the private sector, financialinstitutions, foundations and otherdonors to support the preparations forthe Conference through voluntarycontributions to the SIDS Trust Fundheld by the Department of Economicand Social Affairs (DESA). Onfundraising, High RepresentativeAcharya is collaborating closely withUSG Hongbo of DESA, in his capacityas the Secretary General of the 2014 SIDS Conference, to sensitisedevelopment partners to the need forfinancial support towards the 2014SIDS Conference and indeed thepreparatory processes leading up to the Conference.

Likewise, UN-OHRLLS is workingclosely with DESA in its role asSecretariat for the Conference alongwith other UN system entities andregional bodies through the SIDSInter-agency Consultative Group(IACG) mechanism to mobilize supportand resources towards the prepara -tory processes and indeed theConference itself. UN-OHRLLS willalso play an important role within theInter-departmental Task Force thatwill focus on timely and effectivelogistical arrangements incollaboration with the host country.

On the substantive front, UN-OHRLLSis planning several SIDS specificevents – as opposed to various otherevents relating to LDCs and LLDCs -

SIDS are made increasingly vulnerable by the

negative impact of climate change.

Preparations for the Third InternationalConference on Small Island DevelopingStates, 2014

A PROGRESS REPORT

Reuters

15Winter 2012

that will tie into the preparations forthe 2014 Conference on SIDS inSamoa. For instance:

• It is tentatively scheduled that inMarch of 2013, UN-OHRLLS willconvene an Experts Group Meetingon the significance of MarineScience and Technology for SIDSand the importance of CapacityBuilding and Marine TechnologiesTransfer to SIDS. This meeting isscheduled to take place in NewYork and will involve partneringwith UN entities includingUNESCO’s IntergovernmentalOceanographic Commission (IOC).

• Between the 19th and 23rd of May,2013, the Fourth Session of theGlobal Platform for Disaster RiskReduction will take place inGeneva. Here, UN-OHRLLS plans to convene a SIDS specific HighLevel featured event at the GlobalPlatform to place emphasis on theimportance of mobilizing

international support to reducedisaster risk and build resilience in SIDS communities.

• On the 9th-11th April, 2013, UN-OHRLLS is partnering with theAmerican Museum of NaturalHistory’s and its Center forBiological Diversity who will hold a two day symposium addressingcurrent issues in the conservationof biological and cultural diversityacross oceanic islands. While thesymposium will concentrate onscientific issues, OHRLLS willparticipate at the event focussingon building the vital linkagesbetween science and policy settingrelating to resilience andbiodiversity in SIDS.

• As a follow-up to Rio+20 andindeed the MSI, it is the intentionof the office that in the comingyear, an assessment of SIDSnational sustainable developmentarrangements will be carried out

which will focus on the institu -tional capacity needs of SIDS andhow these have been able to supportSIDS national sustainabledevelopment aspirations.

The objective of these thematicconsultations is to inform thepreparatory processes leading into theSIDS conference in 2014 and enableSIDS and their development partnersto begin focusing on themes and areasfor possible future collaboration andcooperation.

The current endeavours by UN-OHRLLS in collaboration withDESA and other UN system entitiesand regional bodies will lead to afruitful Third InternationalConference on SIDS in 2014; thusleading to furthering progresstowards the sustainable developmentaspirations of Small Island DevelopingStates.

LDC Portal – A tool forLDCs toward graduationAna Luiza Cortez, UnitedNations’ Chief of theCommittee for Develop -ment Policy Secretariat, in conversation withMediaGlobal’s BureauChief Nosh Nalavala

Nosh Nalavala Ms. Cortez, theobjective of the support measuresportal for LDCs, the way I see it, is toincrease national capacity ingovernments and export sectors inparticipating LDCs. Is this projectaimed primarily at trade issues?

Ana Luiza Cortez No, not really.The original idea of the project is toincrease capacity in least developedcountries because what we realizedhere at the Committee for Develop -ment Policy (CDP) Secretariat is that every time that an LDC wasrecommended to be graduated from

the list of LDCs, there was a greatdeal of concern from the part of thecountry that it would lose certainbenefits and advantages, which istrue. But the countries were notaware about which advantages thoseare and so that was a problem becausemany of them thought that access toconcessional finance for instance fromthe bank or the fund, the IMF or theWorld Bank were conditional on beingan LDC, which is not the case. Andthere were a series of other measureswhich they thought were LDC-relatedwhen they were not. So we felt thatthere was a need for countries to bebetter acquainted with existingsupport measures for LDCs so theycan use them and also better preparethemselves for graduation.

NN So what do you do to allay thesefears?

ALC We classify those measures inthree major categories: it is related to

trade benefits, that it is not onlymarket access but also measuresrelated to special treatment in otherprovisions of the legal tax. Then thereare measures related to officialdevelopment assistance, and finallythere are what we call, other forms ofsupport measures such as discounts,

INTERVIEW

continued on page 16

16 Winter 2012

contribution to the UN budget, accessto travel funds, and things like that.

NN I know that the portal is an LDCportal but there are least developedcountries in the small islanddeveloping states as well aslandlocked developing countries. Doesyour work spill over into those areasas well?

ALC The SIDS and landlockedcountries classified as least developedalso have access to the same LDCmeasures, inasmuch as they remainas LDCs. As such, they also have, intheory, access to these measures andthey can also benefit from access tothis information from the portal.

NN The words ‘special treatment’ isbeing used. What exactly are LDCsseeking in terms of ‘special treatment’regarding the WTO-relatedobligations?

ALC I don’t know what LDCs arespecifically negotiating right now, butI know that for instance, they recentlygot a preferential market access interms of services which was not partof the special measures for LDCs.They had preferential market accessin goods and not in services. And this is a new thing, of course it isvoluntary on the part of the tradingpartner, except for say, the U.S. or the EU or India to grant preferentialtreatment for services to LDCs. Butthey did get a waiver, which was notthere earlier.

NN Can you define ‘preferentialtreatment’?

ALC Yes, for instance, I am Braziland I tax a tariff on ports of wheat at10 per cent. If you are fromBangladesh and you are an exporterof wheat, I may not impose tariff onmy imports of wheat from you. So youhave an advantage vis-à-vis the otherwheat producers. That’s whatpreferential treatment can do.

NN Was this one of the mandatesthat came out of the IstanbulProgramme of Action that is beingimplemented through the LDC portalnow?

ALC No, this actually precedes theConference. The portal itself is notmandated from the IstanbulProgramme of Action. It was theinitiative of the Secretariat. It was ourinitiative, but it does help in theimplementation of the IstanbulProgramme of Action, especiallybecause it provides easy-to-access listof all the commitments being used byLDCs themselves. And most of themeasures that we list on the portal, if not 99 percent of those measures,precede the Istanbul Programme ofAction.

NN Did they start with the BrusselsProgramme of Action?

ALC Even before that; the enablingclause, for instance, was adopted in1979, so it precedes these initiatives.

NN In other words, it has taken 10years for this initiative to beimplemented?

ALC Yes and no. The preferentialmarket access was there earlier. Whatyou see through time is how it hasevolved. For instance in 2005 at theHong Kong WTO Ministerial meeting,there was an agreement to provideduty-free, quota-free goods to LDCs toat least 97 per cent of all tariff lines of trade-in partners and not only indeveloped countries but also in otherdeveloping countries which were in the position to do so. How themeasure was being implemented hasevolved over time, so it has been fine-tuned and become wider.

NN Is this (preferential treatment)being extended or being expected ofdeveloped countries as well? Does thishelp narrowing the gap between thenorth and the south in terms ofnarrowing trade restrictions?

ALC It offers an opportunity forleast developed countries to havegreater access to markets in developedcountries. But it is not clear whetherLDCs are able to make use of suchopportunities because on one side,there are issues of limits of productivecapacities in the LDCs, and from theother side, there are issues of originthat in a way restrict the use of thepreference by LDCs themselves. Andthe third problem is that countriesthat grant preference to LDCs are alsoin trade agreements with other

countries, and they extend preferenceto these countries as well. Conse -quently, the effective level ofpreference is much lower.

NN And how does this project helpofficial development assistance (ODA)?

ALC There are specific targets ofODA as far as the developed countriesare concerned. The developedcountries have committed to giveLDCs between 0.15 to 0.20 percent ofthe GNI. Some of them have madeconcerete commitments. This is fordeveloping countries in general, butthere is a specific share for the LDCs,so in following up on these commit -ments implies that the LDCs couldhave potentially more access tofinancial and technological tools fromdeveloping countries.

NN You mentioned something aboutthe LDCs unable to take advantage ofthe markets opening up in developingcountries. Why would you infer thatthe LDCs are unable to take advantageof the existing benefits associatedwith the LDC status?

ALC Being an LDC, they lackproduc tive capacity. They lackinfrastructure, roads, technicalcapacity in the sense of having inplace all the institutions thatguarantee the right conditions. Sowhile the measure is there, it isimportant for countries to improvetheir productive capacity.

NN You have pilot countries inAfrica selected for this project. Whichare these countries and what are theparameters of the project?

ALC We did case studies in Africa onCape Verde, which is a graduatedcountry, but we wanted to study theexperience of the country moving intograduation and how it negotiates withits partners the transition out of theLDC category. The other one was onMali and we focused on the integratedframework, the experience of Mali. Wealso had a case study on Mozambique,which we focused on the NationalAdaptation Programme of Action,which is on Climate Change. We haveSamoa, Bangladesh, Nepal andGambia.

Interview with Cortezcontinued from page 15

17Winter 2012

UN-OHRLLS actively participates in theclimate change process at COP-18

High Representative laysout a plan of action

Given the disproportionate impact ofclimate change on LDCs, LLLDCs andSIDS UN-OHRLLS has becomeincreasingly active in the globaldebate on climate change process.While their contribution to globalwarming is negligible, LDCs andSIDS have and will continue to bearthe brunt of these adverse effects ofclimate change that threaten to undothe gains many of them have made inpursuit of sustainable development.For many of these vulnerablecountries, climate change and itsimpacts go beyond merely develop -ment challenges and adaptationefforts – it is a matter of survival.

UN-OHRLLS role is to lend its voice insupport of LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS, asthe UN Secretariat’s chief advocate forthese vulnerable countries, and toforge partnerships between thesecountries and their development

partners on this most critical ofissues.

Under Secretary-General GyanAcharya participated in three side-events as a speaker at COP 18 inDoha. On 3 December 2012, the USGparticipated at an event organized bythe International Centre forIntegrated Mountain Development(ICIMOD) on ‘REDD+ and povertyreduction: what has worked and whatis possible?’. He focused on severalREDD+ pilot countries in theirreadiness phase including povertyreduction as a co-benefit outcome ofreduction of emissions. This sideevent shared experiences and insightsfrom cases in India, Nepal, andMexico, and identified potentials forreplication/adaption in othercountries, including in LDCs.

Later the same day Mr. Acharyaparticipated as a panelist in a side-event organized by UNFCCCSecretariat. The event was on the‘Work of the LDC Expert Group (LEG)in supporting National Adaptation

Plans of Action (NAPAs) and NationalAdaptation Plans (NAPs) in LDCs’.The event also saw the LDCs ExpertGroup (LEG) launch of the technicalguidelines for the NAPs. The next daythe High Representative attended anevent co-organized with the LDCsWatch, an international NGO whichfocuses exclusively on developmentalissues related to the least developedcountries. This event was titled:Climate Change Justice for LDCs:Financing Adaptation and Imple -menting the Istanbul Programme ofAction. Mr. Acharya shared the panelwith Dr. Keshav Man Shakya,Minister of Environment, Science and Technology, Nepal; Dr. ArjunKarki, International Co-ordinator,LDC Watch; Ms. Lidy Nacpil; arepresentative of the South Centre;and a representative of Pan-AfricanClimate Change Coalition.

USG Acharya briefs delegates at COP 18 in

Doha on the damaging impact of climate

change on vulnerable countries.

continued on page 18

18 Winter 2012

In his remarks, the USG gave asnapshot of the current state of playfor LDCs in the context of MDGs andhighlighted the fact that at currentrate a number of LDCs will not evenmeet even one of the MDGs. Heunderscored the fact that thesechallenges for LDCs have beencompounded and will continue to be affected by climate change. Hehighlighted that LDCs do not havethe capacity to withstand the impactof climate change. Many people livingin LDCs, particularly in the ruralareas, continue to depend on theenviron ment and natural resourcesfor their livelihood. The LDCs willcontinue to need support of theinternational community to allowthem to meet these challenges thatare outlined in the IPOA.

He assured the meeting that the UNsystem will continue to support LDCs.The High Representative also calledfor better transfer and diffusion oftechnology in a more comprehensivemanner. He highlighted the impor -tance of climate proofing with regardto infrastructure development inLDCs and drew the link between theenergy, water and food issues thatwere prioritized by the IPOA. Heempha sized that any new financingpackages must have an LDC

component, seeing that they are themost vulnerable group of countries.

UN-OHRLLS and Climate Change

The High Representative’s attendanceat COP-18 was well received by therepresentatives of LDCs, LLDCs andSIDS who attended the conference.The involvement of UN-OHRLLS atCOP-18 raised the profile of the Officenot only amongst the office’sconstituents but it also did so amongthe UN system. UN-OHRLLS willcontinue to increase its efforts inengaging on the issues pertaining toclimate change on a global level.

In light of the cross-cutting nature of the climate change agenda whichcovers the development and securitypillars of the work of the organi -zation, UN-OHRLLS will continue tosupport LDCs and SIDS in the climatechange process and advocate for theircauses. Given that UN-OHRLLS’ has a specific mandate, within the UNsystem, over the most vulnerablecountries that have the least means to adapt to the onset of adverseclimate change impacts, UN-OHRLLSis taking steps to further strengthenits work on climate change issues. These include:

Increasing interaction with LDCs andSIDS on matters pertaining to climatechange; developing a dedicatedwebpage on climate change providing

perspectives of LDCs and SIDS;seeking membership in the UnitedNations Partners on Climate Change;seeking opportunities for activeparticipation in UN Secretariatdeliberations on climate changeincluding through consultations withthe CCST; active participation inclimate change processes, includingfacilitating special events, discus -sions, side-events at key climatechange meetings and UNFCCC COPs;actively collaborating with UN systementities to develop papers, strategiesas they relate to climate changeimpacts, in favour of LDCs and SIDS;and, strengthening and developingpartnerships with institutions, bothgovernmental and non-governmental,as well as private sector and civilsociety to seek solutions to address the impact of climate change on LDCsand SIDS.

COP-19, Warsaw, Poland

UN-OHRLLS intends to activelyparticipate in COP-19 including in the convening of side-events throughpartnership with UN system entitiesand other non-UN actors andstakeholders. UN-OHRLLS will, inconsultation with its constituents,develop appropriate themes for theconvening of special events at COP-19.

LDCs play a prominent role in GeneralAssembly Deliberations2012 witnessed considerablemomentum behind the IstanbulProgramme of Action (IPoA), whichwas adopted in Istanbul in May 2011.The continued support from thedevelopment partners and theprogress made by the LDCsthemselves was confirmed in thevarious LDC-related United NationsGeneral Assembly meetings andevents.

The LDC Ministerial Meeting tookplace in September 2012 during the67th session of the General Assembly.At the beginning of the meeting, the Foreign Minister of Nepal, Mr. Narayan Kaji Shrestha handedover the chairmanship of the LDCGroup to the Foreign Minister ofBenin, Mr. Nassirou Bako-Arifari.

Several LDC delegates narrated howtheir national strategies reflected thegoals outlined in IPoA and how their

exit strategies would support theirgraduation by 2020, which is theultimate goal of the IPoA.Furthermore they stressed that moreattention should be paid to smoothtransition processes to ensure thatgrowth is sustainable andmaintained. A focus was placed onthe need for greater ownership on thepart of LDCs and increasedrepresentation and participation inglobal decision-making processes.

AN OVERVIEW AND ROUND-UP

UN-OHRLLS at COP-18continued from page 17

19Winter 2012

At the end of the meeting, aMinisterial declaration was adoptedby consensus. This declarationreiterates the firm commitment topromote and implement the IPoA. It furthermore highlights seriousconcerns over the ongoing multiplecrises that affect LDCs in many ways,such as, the possible fall of the netbilateral ODA. The declaration alsoemphasizes the need forstrengthening the global partnershipfor development, encompassing thefull range of actors, includingparliaments, civil society, the privatesector and foundations.

LDC issues were also discussed in thesession of the Second Committee ofthe General Assembly in Octoberdedicated to groups of countries inspecial situations. The UnderSecretary-General, Mr. Acharya,introduced the Secretary-General’sReport on the Implementation of theProgramme of Action for the LDCsfor the Decade 2011 to 2020 (A/67/88)and the Report on ensuring theeffective implementation of thefunctions of the Office of the HighRepresentative (A/67/262).Furthermore, the Report of the GAad-hoc working group to furtherstudy and strengthen the smoothtransition process for the countriesgraduating from the LDC category(A/67/92) was considered.

In this context, two LDC relatedresolutions were adopted: Follow-upto the Fourth United NationsConference on the Least DevelopedCountries (A/Res/67/220) andResolution on smooth transition forcountries graduating from the list ofleast developed countries(A/Res/67/221).

The first resolution providesreassurance of the will of the MemberStates to provide enhanced and tailor-made support to the LDCs andreaffirms the commitments made inthe IPoA. It also proposes morecoherent UN system-wide follow-upand monitoring of the implementa -tion of the IPoA, as well as theinclusion of the implementation of the IPoA as a standing item on theagenda of the Chief Executive Board.This is expected to contribute to astrong and coherent system-widefollow-up and monitoring of theimplementation of the IPoA.Furthermore the resolutionunderlines that OHRLLS should beprovided with adequate resources to

fulfill its expanded mandate for thetimely and effective implementationof the IPoA.

The resolution on smooth transitionspells out the need gradual transitionfrom LDC status based on a strongnational strategy and supported byinternational measures. MemberStates are encouraged to enhanceinformation-sharing and theirunderstanding of available LDC-specific international supportmeasures, their characteristics andmodalities. It recommends that theconsultative mechanism for smoothtransition should be established bythe graduating country, incooperation with its bilateral andmultilateral development and tradingpartners with support from the UNsystem. The resolution also invitesthe development partners to considerLDC indicators such as the GNI percapita, the human assets index andthe economic vulnerability index, aspart of their criteria for allocatingofficial development assistance.

A number of key issues affecting the LDCs were raised

during the 67th GA. Reuters

2012 witnessed considerable momentum behind

the Istanbul Programme of Action (IPoA), which

was adopted in Istanbul in May 2011. The continued

support from the development partners and the

progress made by the LDCs themselves was

confirmed in the various LDC-related United

Nations General Assembly meetings and events.

20 Winter 2012

BEST PRACTICESof how diaspora knowledge, skills and resources canbe successfully harnessed and transferred to LDCs

Afghan diaspora encouraged to return.As part of reconstruction efforts of the2000s, international organizations mobilizedhigh skilled diaspora members to contributethrough transfer of skill and knowledge, andlocal capacity-building. From 2002 until2006, 38 volunteers provided assistance tothe national capacity-building efforts of the Afghan Interim Administration and the successor government. They were mobilized through the TOKTENprogramme of the UNDP. IOM launched a Temporary Return of QualifiedNationals (TRQN) programme together with the Netherlands. It mobilized andfinanced the temporary return (for three or six months) of members of theAfghan diaspora in the Netherlands in the fields of education, health,engineering, infrastructure and information technology. These innovations had been learned and/or practised by diaspora members in the host country.Participants mentioned as their motivation identification with the home countryand their desire to participate in its rebuilding.

Medical diasporanetwork for Bangladesh.

Mobilizing resources andknowledge transfer to Haiti.In Canada, the Regroupement desorganismes canado-haïtiens pour ledéveloppement (ROCADH) is an effort tocoalesce many philanthropic organizationsworking for the advancement of Haitiancommunities back home. ROCADH brings

together some 47 home town associations. It has been active in the fields ofeducation and capacity-building (including in agricultural, animal breedingtechniques, commodity processing, medical and tourism service skills).ROCADH has been able to channel substantial funding through the CanadianInternational Development Agency (CIDA). To be eligible for CIDA funds,ROCADH has to contribute one-third of the value of the project.

Bangladeshi physicians in North America established theBangladesh Medical Association ofNorth America (BMANA) in 1980.It supports the home country byorganizing visits of medical teamsto provide training and technologytransfer, provision of subsidized/pro bono specialized clinicalservices, and donation of books,computers and journals to medicalcolleges and universities inBangladesh. Its members havebeen participating in activities ofknowledge transfer and trainingin terms of cutting-edge advancesin medical specialities, such asneurology, surgery and infectioncontrol.

Source – The LDC Report 2012, UNCTAD

Strengthening PhD education at the University of Addis Ababa. Given the obvious need for more and better training at the doctorate level in Ethiopia, the country’s largest universityestablished several PhD programmes. It realized, however, that in order to reach its objectives it could not rely uniquelyon its own resources. Accordingly, it decided to mobilize the knowledge of the national diaspora working in foreignacademic institutions. To this end, in 2008 it launched a large-scale programme financed by the Ethiopian Governmentand the Swedish and French official development aid agencies. The main participants abroad have been Ethiopiansactive in US and European universities, who in several cases convinced their non-Ethiopian colleagues to take part inthe project. Their collaboration with the home country has taken the form of participation in research seminars, bookdonations, links between laboratories in the universities of Addis Ababa and laboratories abroad, and thesis direction bydiaspora members. The programme has had a considerable impact on several departments.