High-level Meeting on Middle-income Countries

In accordance with General Assembly resolution 78/162 entitled “Development cooperation with middle-income countries”, the President of the General Assembly will convene a high-level meeting on middle-income countries under the theme “Addressing Structural Barriers to Sustainable Development in Middle-Income Countries” on 1 April 2025.

The meeting will be held in the General Assembly Hall from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and the Trusteeship Council Chamber from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., at the United Nations Headquarters, New York.

Over 100 countries are currently characterized by the World Bank as middle-income, with Gross National Income per capita between USD$1,146 and USD$14,005.

Altogether, middle-income countries account for around 75 per cent of global population, 60 per cent of the world’s poor, and one third of global gross domestic product.

The reliance on an income-only criterion leads to a large and heterogeneous group of countries that differ vastly across a set of economic, social and environmental development indicators. For instance, according to recent data, within the group, the Multidimensional Poverty Index ranged from 0.001 to 0.373; income inequality as measured by the Gini Index ranged from 19.2 to 72.9; the Gender Inequality Index ranged
from 0.10 to 0.68; and the Human Development Index ranged from 0.471 to 0.855. Greenhouse gas emissions also vary greatly, between 0.07 and 24.05 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per capita.

Despite many differences, middle-income countries also face similar challenges, inter alia, limited job creation, the heavy reliance on primary commodity exports, the adverse effects of climate change and disasters, as well as unsustainable external debt levels, exchange rate volatility and limited capital flows.

Compared to other country groupings, middle-income countries experience more frequent growth slowdowns, as returns from capital investment diminish and growth models based on accumulation and extraction become less successful. If left unaddressed, this loss of economic dynamism can cause countries to get stuck in what is referred to as a “middle-income trap”. In fact, since 2000, only 27 countries transitioned from the middle-income to high-income classification. However, a closer look reflects that many countries experienced reversals back to middle-income status, with 11 countries switching back and forth at least once before reaching their current high-income status.

International cooperation will be necessary to assist middle-income countries in recovering from current crises, managing the necessary sustainable and inclusive growth transitions, and harnessing their potential for contributing to common development objectives. In this context, the “middle-income” classification should not serve as an obstacle for benefiting from inclusive international development cooperation or for
accessing adequate and predictable financing for sustainable development.

As a result, of the existing approaches to development cooperation, most official financial flows to middle-income countries take the form of loans rather than grants, including access to climate finance. These countries do not meet the eligibility criteria for concessional financing from multilateral development banks (MDBs).

Based on the foregoing, it is evident that the gross domestic product (GDP) measurement by itself does not provide a comprehensive picture of a country’s development realities, and it fails to acknowledge the different challenges that exist among middle-income countries. Moving beyond GDP is therefore essential to accurately assess development progress and effectively inform decision-making, including for international development cooperation with middle-income countries.

In this context, the General Assembly, in the Pact for the Future, reaffirmed the need to urgently develop a framework on measures of progress on sustainable development that complement or go beyond GDP.

As outlined in the Pact for the Future, measures that complement or go beyond GDP should reflect progress on the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development, including in the consideration of informing access to development finance and technical cooperation. Key options that may be considered and explored include the UN updated System of National Accounts (SNA) in 2025, and the
revised UN Global Indicators Framework for SDG in 2025.

The high-level meeting will discuss the structural barriers for middle-income countries in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and explore the impact of new approaches that go beyond gross domestic product, which could inform international development cooperation, including policy and financial decisions.

Member States and Observers are invited to inscribe in the list of speakers for the plenary segment of the meeting through e-deleGATE.

The list of speakers will be opened on Monday, 24 February 2025 at 10 a.m. The time limit for statements will be three (3) minutes for individual statements and five (5) minutes for statements on behalf of groups.

There will be no pre-established list of speakers for the panel discussion. Participants wishing to take the floor during the interactive discussion are invited to press the microphone button. The time limit will be three minutes for individual statements and five minutes for statements on behalf of groups.

The meeting will be broadcasted on UN WebTV.

The high-level meeting will consist of an opening segment, a plenary segment, and a panel discussion. The meeting will be open to Member States and Observers, the United Nations system, ECOSOC-accredited non-governmental organizations.

A brief summary of the President of the General Assembly will feed into the Secretary-General’s report on the implementation of the General Assembly resolution 78/162.

General Assembly Hall

10:00 a.m. – 10:40 a.m. Opening Segment
10:40 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Plenary Segment

1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Lunch break

Trusteeship Council Chamber

3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Panel Discussion

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The panel will discuss the role of various types of international development cooperation with middle-income countries in addressing their diverse needs, and the importance of providing coordinated and inclusive support to middle-income countries based on their specific challenges.

Guiding questions:

1. How can Member States build on the Pact for the Future and transform the political commitments into concrete actions towards the development of measures that complement or go beyond GDP?

2. What tailored solutions, policies, initiatives and practices from the international
community are proven to be effective to advancing the development of middle-income countries, including with a view towards the digital revolution?

3. How can the international financial architecture be reformed to reflect the economic weight and better fit the needs of middle-income countries, and prevent looming liquidity and debt crises? How to ensure this reform yields the desired more inclusive approach by international financial institutions, multilateral development banks, and bilateral donors to international development cooperation with middle-income countries?

4. What role can the Development in Transition approach play in ensuring that graduated countries don’t face disruptions in their development plans and programs, including access to financing? How to enable equitable, inclusive, and just transition pathways for sustainable development?

5. How to build transformative partnerships within and with middle-income countries? How to leverage the power of South-South cooperation and Triangular cooperation in addressing the development needs of middle-income countries?

6. What is the role of private sector and public-private partnership in crafting policies and providing financing for middle-income countries?

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