5th 51�Թ� Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC5) - LDCs

Vanuatu Graduates from Least Developed Country Status

HSASS — Fri, 04 Dec 2020 21:36:00 +0000

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In all its cultural vividness, performers from Futuna island, Vanuatu, celebrate their traditional dance.

Graham Crumb / DFAT

NEW YORK 4 December 2020 – The small island nation of Vanuatu is celebrating today as it is officially no longer classified as one of the world’s least developed countries, or LDCs.

Despite the compounding threats of COVID-19, natural disasters and climate change, the Vanuatu government sees graduation as a positive sign that the country is increasingly able to build resilience and meet its citizens’ needs.

Vanuatu is the sixth country to graduate out of the LDC category, an achievement that the Secretary-General of the 51�Թ�, António Guterres, called “historic” and the result of years of effort resulting in hard-won sustainable development gains.

In a video address to the people of Vanuatu, Mr. Guterres said:

“It is admirable that Vanuatu’s graduation will move forward despite the setbacks it has suffered from the ever-worsening impacts of climate change and natural disasters, and the economic devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, on tourism, trade and remittances.“

He continued,

“Let me assure you of my full and undivided support to weather these challenging times, to combat climate change and to defeat the pandemic and recover better from its impacts.”

Repeated natural disasters, including Cyclones Pam and Harold, and recent volcanic eruptions, have decimated food stocks and forced mass displacement in Vanuatu over the last five years.

And while Vanuatu only recorded its first COVID-19 case in November - much later than the rest of the world - the small island state has still been seriously impacted by the pandemic, especially by the collapse in tourism from nearby countries like Australia and New Zealand.

Congratulating the people of Vanuatu, Fekitamoeloa Katoa ‘Utoikamanu, 51�Թ� High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, called upon the international community to provide their full support to Vanuatu after graduation:

"The people of Vanuatu have always been resilient, and graduation is a sign that their economy is increasingly so too. Graduation is a major achievement but also a major challenge. Development and trading partners, and the entire UN system, must commit to providing their full support to ensure a smooth and sustainable transition for Vanuatu.”

H.E. Mr. Odo Tevi, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Vanuatu to the 51�Թ�, expressed confidence in his country’s ability to weather the storm:

"Graduation shows the world Vanuatu’s potential and its ability to achieve its development goals and visions. We will adopt a route of sustainable, resilient and inclusive development that protects our serene ecology and ensures that our children grow up with a new world of opportunities, and a safe and healthy environment.”

46 countries remain classified as least developed, with eleven on, or about to join, the path to graduation. This reflects significant progress over the past number of years. Angola is due to graduate early in 2021, followed by Bhutan in 2023 and São Tomé and Príncipe and the Solomon Islands the following year.

Graduation from the category of Least Developed Countries continues to be a high-priority development objective for LDCs, development partners and multilateral organisations. But it brings important challenges. Ensuring smooth graduation requires transitioning away from LDC-specific support measures, including preferential market access for exports and access to some concessional financing instruments.

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The Future of Work in Least Developed Countries

HSASS — Thu, 19 Nov 2020 22:14:00 +0000

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During the COVID period, merchants use a protective mask to sell their goods in Madagascar.

E. Raboanaly/ILO

The COVID-19 pandemic is ravaging labour markets around the world. Global trends such as globalisation, demographic shifts, climate change and technology have already brought profound shifts to the world of work, and the pandemic has accelerated changes.

Some advanced economies have been able to respond rapidly to adjust, and even take advantage, of these shifts. For some, the pandemic has generated not only new challenges but new opportunities for job creation. These countries stand ready to benefit from the spread of remote working arrangements, increasing automation and changes in international manufacturing.

But, as with many issues, the Least Developed Countries have struggled most to overcome deep-rooted and pre-existing vulnerabilities, and risk being left even further behind. LDCs often have limited cash to respond to crises, less and poorer technology available to work with and degraded environments. Their growing youth populations must be also absorbed by already fragile labour markets.

As we enter the last ten years of the 2030 Agenda and begin preparations for the Fifth 51�Թ� Conference on the LDCs (LDC5), where a new Programme of Action for LDCs will be agreed, OHRLLS and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) held a global event on November 19, 2020 to reflect on the actions required at national and international levels to overcome these vulnerabilities and achieve a promising future of work in the LDCs.

The event brought together governments, policymakers, researchers and others to hear about the impact of COVID-19 on labour markets in LDCs and propose policy frameworks to foster recovery and build future resilience. The ILO presented the alarming impact of the effect of COVID-19 on the labour market in LDCs and suggested policy options to consider as the world prepares for LDC5.

Laying out the situation on the ground, H.E Perks Ligoya, Permanent Representative of Malawi to the 51�Թ� and Chair of the LDC Group, said that, LDCs have suffered the collapse of exports and tourism resulting in “a perfect tsunami of unemployment”. To compound the problem, migrant workers from LDCs are also losing their jobs, resulting in a huge loss of remittances. The end result, he said, is an increase in debt burdens and “the greatest economic crisis in decades”.

Calling for investment in digital connectivity as a vital lifeline in connecting economies, Ambassador Ligoya also called for investment in “decent work” and for the IMF and other Multilateral Development Banks to meet historical commitments and cancel all debts.

The High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, Fekitamoeloa Katoa ‘Utoikamanu, called for the issue of employment to be reflected at the heart of the next programme of action for LDCs. “Generating decent jobs at a time where the future of work is shifting will be critical to the ability of the LDCs to achieve an inclusive and sustainable development in the decade to come,” she said.

Moussa Oumarou, Deputy Director-General for Field Operations and Partnerships at ILO, called for the international community to advance opportunities for decent work that “provides just remuneration, ensures basic rights at work, provides adequate social protection, and the capacity to negotiate and develop work-related policies through social dialogue.”

He said that the right mix of policies to create a conducive environment for people to work themselves out of poverty is the most decent and sustainable way to avoid the deep scars on jobs and incomes resulting from the pandemic.

Speaking on behalf of the Host Country of the LDC5 Conference, HE Permanent Representative of Qatar to the 51�Թ�, Sheikha Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al-Thani, said that she hoped the Conference "builds a vision to help the 880m people in LDCs on a path to sustainable development” and delivers a “promising a future of work”.

She added that Qatar looks forward to working closely with OHRLLS and the ILO to further strengthen cooperation in 2021 as the world prepares for LDC5.

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Tackling Vulnerability on the Road to LDC5

HSASS — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 18:56:00 +0000

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Social distance during COVID-19. Kalerwe Market, in the suburb of Kampala city

Yasin Nsubuga ILO / RUDMEC

NEW YORK 27 October 2020 – COVID-19 is impacting the world’s Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in unprecedented, profound and disproportionate ways. This is why these countries, often unable to afford comprehensive response plans, need more international support.

So what does COVID-19 mean for the most vulnerable countries and the support they need from the international community?

That was the over-riding question at a two-part high-level forum organised by OHRLLS, the OECD Development Centre and FERDI on October 21 and 23.

At the meeting, representatives from governments, multilateral institutions and civil society urged the international community to rethink the economic vulnerability of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), and of developing countries more generally.

Fekitamoeloa Katoa ‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, issued a stark warning to those present at the meeting and the international community at large: “The very credibility of the multilateral system is at stake.”

She explained: “LDCs are the most vulnerable with least access to resources. The LDCs’ structural vulnerabilities are visible to all of us and there is absolute urgency to build resilience and redouble efforts towards achieving the SDGs.”

Vulnerability is one of the main criteria for including in the LDC category in the first instance. It is measured by the economic and environmental vulnerability index (EVI), which captures a country’s structural vulnerability to economic and environmental shocks.

However, growing concerns on exposure to international shocks, and the compounding of several risks, make it necessary to rethink how we think of national and individual vulnerability and how we help the LDCs address it.

Prof. Patrick Guillamont, President of FERDI, highlighted that the vulnerability of LDCs is largely due to structural handicaps beyond their control. It is due to these vulnerabilities, he said, that LDCs have been especially severely affected by COVID-19 in all sectors of their economies. He stressed that reducing vulnerability is the key to managing all shocks, from economic to climate-related.

Speaking about the importance of “people-centric” approaches to tackling vulnerability, Director General of the Qatar Fund for Development, HE Khalifa Jassim Al-Kuwari told the meeting that “The local community has the knowledge, understands the challenges faced and knows which of them are the most pressing.”

Any global recovery will depend on how the weakest economies and health systems can cope with the pandemic. While developed countries have taken large-scale action to deliver broad stimulus packages and protective measures, many of the most vulnerable countries do not have the means, or are too deep in debt, to do the same.

HE Abila Musleh, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Women Affairs in Afghanistan talked about the financial challenges that her country has faced since the pandemic broke out.

“Beyond the very serious human cost and economic downturn, COVID has created a large fiscal hole,” she said, adding that while “donors have responded with some $1.5bn in quick response aid, but only a small portion represents new money.”

HE Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), said that the international community must “reinvigorate and reform international co-operation" to better respond to the emerging challenges.

Calling a more robust approach to the measurement and assessment of vulnerability in development responses, he called for the international community to focus on placing multidimensional vulnerabilities, resilience and the provision of global public goods at the core of the system.”

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