General Assembly: Joint thematic event of the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council on Least Developed Countries
On 18 June 2021, the Presidents of the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) convened a joint thematic event on Least Developed Countries (LDCs).
The joint event was held under the theme “Diversifying the Financing Toolbox to Enhance Investment in Least Developed Countries”, and built common ground on strengthening national and global financing mechanisms to ensure a smart and modern risk-informed and resilient financing toolbox for LDCs aiming at accelerated implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), while building back better from the pandemic and resilience against future crises.
Discussions at the thematic event will also highlight the importance of engagement with various stakeholders including governments, international financial institutions, private sector, foundations and other stakeholders in addressing the new and emerging challenges and seizing the opportunities offered by innovative financing for SDGs.
Nominated by ICMYO as a youth representative, Myesha Maliha Binte Mamun of Bangladesh – an advocate for sexual and reproductive health and rights in International Federation of Medical Student’s Association - joined the event to discuss how to build resilience against future crises in the world's Least Developed Countries.
Read Maliha’s statement below:
“Dear President of the general assembly, president of the economic and social council, excellence’s and distinguished guests, this is Myesha Maliha Binte Mamun , a final year medical student from Bangladesh, working as an advocate for sexual and reproductive health and rights in International Federation of Medical Student’s Association and I am incredibly honored to be here at the joint thematic event of the general assembly and the ECOSOC.
I believe youths are the future and if we want to work for a better future then the first step would be to involve youths in the process of decision making. I do not believe in just pointing out the problems but I believe in finding out a solution to those problems. Hence today I am speaking on behalf of all the youths of the 46 LDCs and the marginalized groups. I will be their voice for today.
The Least Developed Countries (LDCs) have experienced some positive developments, yet new challenges remain with new risks and uncertainties threatening development gains. LDCs as a whole has a weak capacity to cope with shocks and stresses, both at the micro and macro level; addressing the structural drivers of economic and environmental vulnerability, including natural hazards: lack of economic diversification, in particular a high reliance on primary goods production and export, a narrow fiscal base, and weak institutions. The cascading effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have exacerbated pre-existing challenges facing young people in LDCs. It has also negatively impacted the livelihoods and human rights of LDCs’ youth, such as destroying their jobs and disrupting their education. ( For example, students transitioned to distance learning, but only 20% of LDCs’ youth were able to access digital platforms, while over 70% of students in high-income countries were able to. The digital divide continues to threaten LDCs’ success.) (In many LDCs there are also considerable challenges related to demographic trends. About 60 percent of the population in LDCs is currently under the age of 25, and the number of young people in the LDCs will increase by more than 60 percent over the next 40 years.) The Young People in the least Developed Countries are limited in resources but are not limited in their willingness to participate in solving issues. Empowering young people in LDCs is crucial to the success of the next program of action. Young people can be a driver for economic growth and social progress if they enjoy health, education, and employment. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development calls for a transformation of all economies – Rich and poor alike – to move the world’s sustainable development pathways. But to date, the SDGs have been seriously underfunded. While the flow of finance is dwindling, the need for it is getting high. The annual financing gap to achieve the SDGs by 2030 currently sits at USD 2.5 trillion. Finance providers have a particular role to play (and a responsibility) to support the poorest countries to make use of these diverse instruments in ways that are responsible to minimize risk and secure maximum development benefits for low-income vulnerable countries. Public initiatives and public finance need to launch and pilot innovative financing initiatives. It needs to be ensured that suitable financial products (savings, credit, insurance, payments, and remittances) are available to individuals. Also, Digital finance alone could benefit billions of people by spurring inclusive growth that would add $3.7 trillion to the GDP of emerging economies within a decade, according to a report by the McKinsey Global Institute.
Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to call for action from the esteemed guests present here today to empower the youths of LDCs through a sustainable financial budget which will help to narrow the gap between the developing and the developed countries.
Thank you so much”