Asia Pacific LDCs urge developed countries to implement the pledges as their three-day conference concluded in Dhaka yesterday
- State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam (first from left) and Finance Minister AMA Muhith (second from left), among others, seen at the opening day of LDC conference that concludes yesterday in the capital
A three-day conference of Asia Pacific least developed countries (LDCs) concluded in Dhaka yesterday, with a call for ensuring official development assistance(ODA) as earlier promised by developed countries to make a significant leap forward and meet the graduation criteria by 2020.
Keeping the notion in mind that domestic resource is the main pillar for overcoming financial crisis, it also recommended strategies on searching new sources of financing and tax base expansion to meet domestic demand for fund.
The conference hoped that the newly formed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) would play particular role for providing fund required for meeting the graduation criteria by 2020 from the list of LDCs.
It urged development partners to implement pledges made in the sixth WTO Ministerial Conference held in Hong Kong in 2005 and UN resolution for facing situation of post-LDC graduation.
Economic Relation Division (ERD) Secretary Mohammad Mejbahuddin read-out the recommendations emerged from the three-day regional conference at a press briefing at a city hotel.
“If Bangladesh can make $10-11bn investment per year, it will be able to come out from LDC status before 2020,” he said.
For smooth transition for graduating from the list of LDCs, the recommendations also include making national policy in the light of infrastructure weakness, state crisis and prospect, taking steps for raising investment, wooing foreign direct investment, creating friendly investment environment to encourage private sector, increase of domestic production and resource mobilization.
Forty-nine members of the LDCs must generate enough growth in incomes and economic activity to cut by half the number of LDCs by 2020. The goal, agreed in 2011 during 4th UN Summit, is called the Istanbul Programme of Action where development partners promised to provide 0.15-0.20% of their GNI to LDCs as ODA.
At the three-day conference, 55 policymakers from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Kiribati, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Solomon Islands, East Timor, Tuvalu and Vanuatu participated at the event titled Financing Graduation Gaps of the Asia-Pacific Least Development Countries.
The conference was jointly arranged by Economic Relations Division (ERD), United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) and United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) in Dhaka to find out a strategy to deal with fund deficit for coming out of LDCs.
At present, there are 12 LDCs in Asia and the Pacific region with half of them supposed to graduate by 2020. Samoa and the Maldives have already moved out of the category.
The 12 Asia Pacific LDCs received about $12 billion in ODA in 2012, which was 9% of the total donors’ money. And half of the money went to Afghanistan.
Kiribati, Vanuatu and Tuvalu are moving forward on the path towards graduation, while several countries, including Bangladesh, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Nepal, have formally expressed their commitment to graduate in the next six years.
These LDCs face a number of challenges when it comes to their graduation. They have low levels of human capital and investment, and some are landlocked while others having exposures to natural disasters and economic shocks.
Source: Dhaka Tribune
