LDC Publications

CDP Background Paper No. 30 By Namsuk Kim and Roland Mollerus Institutional constraints prevent the Least Developed Countries from fully utilizing the trade-related International Support Measures provided by development partners. A cost-benefit analysi ...

The second edition of the Handbook on the Least Developed Country Category: Inclusion, Graduation and Special Support Measures (2015) provides comprehensive information on the least developed country (LDC) category, including a description of procedures and methodologies used in the identification of these countries, and the support measures associated with it. It builds upon and updates the previous edition published in 2008. Accordingly, the LDC Handbook is intended for the use by government officials, policymakers, researchers and others interested in the particular development problems and challenges faced by the most disadvantaged developing countries.

The Committee for Development Policy (CDP) launched today the second edition of the Handbook on the Least Developed Country Category: Inclusion, Graduation and Special Support Measures at a briefing in New York. The Handbook contains a detailed description of the procedures and methodologies used by the CDP in the identification of least developed countries (LDCs), as well as an overview of the international support measures associated with the LDC category. As a supplement to the Handbook, the LDC 2015 Country Snapshots was also presented at the briefing. The Country Snapshots is a compilation of one-page profiles for each of the 48 countries classified as LDCs in 2015 and illustrates the gaps in progress towards the LDC graduation thresholds for each country.

Many intergovernmental processes, including the Istanbul Programme of Action, the post-2015 Development Agenda and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, call for a significant increase in ODA toward LDCs. However, even if the commitments were fulfilled, their effectiveness could be minimal if no significant changes are made in the way in which donors allocate and provide ODA. LDCs are among countries with higher levels of aid-dependency, proliferation of donors and aid fragmentation. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the role that ODA can play in the development process of LDCs and the way in which aid should be allocated among countries.

Nepal was the first Least Developed Country to negotiate its accession to the World Trade Organization. The negotiation process was demanding, yet it succeeded in securing a relatively well-balanced accession package. The purpose of this paper is to describe the contours of the negotiation process and to share lessons learned. The paper details the onerous process involved in the accession of LDCs to the WTO and describes the context of Nepal's negotiating positions. Some distinctive aspects of Nepal's approach to the process of accession are highlighted and compared with the situation of some other LDCs.

The least developed country category was established by the international community for countries requiring special support measures for dealing with their structural impediments to growth. Despite the availability of these measures and the efforts of the LDCs themselves, relatively little progress has been achieved. This paper reviews some of the main international support measures from the perspective of five LDCs. It highlights country approaches to the support received and the challenges confronted in accessing the measures. For an effective use of the special support, the report stresses stronger country ownership and improved donor support.

CDP Background Paper No. 21 By José Antonio Alonso, Ana Luiza Cortez and Stephan Klasen The proliferation of country groupings indicates the need to assess the effectiveness of the current system for development cooperation and to explore better ways t ...

CDP Background Paper No. 20 By Hiroshi Kawamura This paper examines the prospects of achieving a main goal of the Istanbul Programme of Action—at least half of the LDCs to meet the graduation criteria by 2020. Based on two different sets of graduation ...

CDP Background Paper No. 18 By Mustafizur Rahman Global evidence suggests that trade-related performance is becoming increasingly important for the socio-economic development of many developing countries. The paper finds that trade preferences accorded ...