UN-OHRLLS

By its resolution 66/213 of 22 December 2011, the General Assembly established an ad hoc open-ended working group to further study and strengthen the smooth transition process for the countries graduating from the least developed country category and to submit a report to the General Assembly during its sixty-seventh session with specific recommendations, consistent with the Istanbul Programme of Action for LDCs for the Decade 2011-2020. The General Assembly also adopted the Terms of Reference of this working group in decision A/66/L.30.

Remarks by H.E. Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, President of the General Assembly, UNGA Hall, 22 December 2011

The President of the General Assembly appointed Ambassador Jan Grauls, Permanent Representative of Belgium, and Ambassador Brian Bowler, Permanent Representative of Malawi, to serve as its Co-Chairs. He also designated UN-OHRLLS as secretariat of the Working Group.

An organizational meeting took place on Monday, 16 January 2012, at 10 a.m. in Conference Room 1 (NLB). The meeting adopted the provisional agenda as contained in document A/AC.279/2012/L.1. The meeting also endorsed the programme of work presented by the Co-Chairs.

The first substantive meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group took place on Thursday, 16 February 2012, at 10 a.m. in Conference Room 6 (NLB). The meeting took stock of the current situation regarding LDC-specific international support measures as well as existing smooth transition measures. The meeting identified gaps and considered LDCs’ concerns related to the phase-out of those measures. Two graduated coutnries shared their national experience with smooth transition from LDC status. An open exchange of views followed on what possible approaches could be developed to address those gaps and concerns.

Statement by H.E. Amb. A. F. Elisaia of Samoa; Presentations by UNDP and the World Bank. For information on IDA, click here.

FINAL meeting (second FORMAL MEETING)

The second formal meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group took place on Wednesday, 6 June 2012, at 11:30 a.m. in Conference Room 4 (NLB). A letter of invitation was sent to all Member States on 31 May 2012. The agenda of the meeting is contained in document A/AC.279/2012/L.1.

In accordance with the agreed work plan of the Ad Hoc Working Group, this formal meeting considered the draft recommendations and adopted the report of the Ad Hoc Working Group to be submitted to the 67th session of the General Assembly (see below for the advance unedited version). Amb. Grouls chaired the meeting. Mr. Cheick Sidi Diarra made a statement. Representatives of Nepal, the European Union, Maldives and Guyana took the floor.

The work of the Ad Hoc Working Group was then concluded.

• REPORT OF THE AHWG (A/67/92) EN – FR

Background Documentation

CONCEPT NOTE on the ad hoc working group by un-ohrlls

Selected GA resolutions and decisions

A/66/L.30 of 22 December 2011	Ad hoc working group on the smooth transition strategy for countries graduating from the list of least developed countries
A/RES/66/213 of 22 December 2011	Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries
A/RES/65/286 of 29 June 2011	Implementing the smooth transition strategy for countries graduating from the list of least developed countries
A/RES/64/295 of 7 September 2010	Extension of the transition period preceding the graduation of Samoa from least developed country status
A/RES/62/97 of 17 December 2007	Graduation of Samoa
A/RES/60/33 of 30 November 2005	Deferral of the smooth transition period for the graduation of Maldives from the list of least developed countries
A/RES/59/209 of 20 December 2004	Smooth transition strategy for countries graduating from the list of least developed countries
A/RES/46/206 of 20 December 1991	Report of the Committee for Development Planning: criteria for identifying the least developed countries.

REPORTS OF THE COMMITTEE FOR DEVELOPMENT POLICY TO ECOSOC

• Report on the fourteenth session of the Committee for Development Policy (12-16 March 2012), document E/2012/33
• “Strengthening smooth transition from the least developed country category”, CDP Background Paper No. 14, February 2012
• “Handbook on the Least Developed Country Category: Inclusion, Graduation and Special Support Measures”, 2008 and updates
• Presentation on “Graduation, special support measures and smooth transition for LDCs”, by Ms. Ana Luiza Cortez, Secretary of the CDP, at the event co-sponsored by the Government of the Maldives and OHRLLS on Graduation and Smooth Transition for LDCs, New York, 10 March 2011
• Ex-Ante Impact Assessments – Equatorial Guinea, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Vanuatu
• Survey on the International Support Measures related to WTO Provisions and Preferential Market Access for LDCs, April 2011
  • Responses by Least Developed Countries – Summary and Analysis
  • Responses by Trading Partners – Summary and Analysis
• Survey on LDC-specific International Support Measures related to Bi-lateral Official Development Assistance, April 2011
  • Responses by Donor Countries – Summary and Analysis
    
• Survey on the International Support Measures related to Multilateral Development Assistance for LDC, April 2011
  • Responses by International Organisations – Summary and Analysis
• “Beyond market access: Trade-related measures for the least developed countries. What strategy?”, by Ana Luiza Cortez, DESA Working Paper No. 109, December 2011

UNOHRLLS

• Special UNLDCIV Pre-Conference Event on “Enhanced International Support and Smooth Transition of LDCs towards Graduation”, 15 October 2010, UNHQ, New York

UNCTAD

• Vulnerability Profiles of countries eligible for graduation – Cape Verde, Equatorial Guinea, Kiribati, Maldives, Samoa, Tuvalu, Vanuatu

WTO

• Special and Differential Provisions in WTO Agreements and Provisions, Note by the WTO Secretariat, WTO document TN/CTD/W/33 of 8 June 2010
• Market Access for Products and Services of Export Interest to Least-Developed Countries, Note by the WTO Secretariat, WTO document WT/COMTD/LDC/W/51 of 10 October 2011

OTHER

• “Making Development Financing in LDCs More Conducive to Development” by Patrick Guillaumont, FERDI Working Paper P18, May 2011
• “On the smooth transition from the LDC status: few remarks” presentation by Patrick Guillaumont made at the event organized by the Mission of the Maldives and OHRLLS on 10 March 2011
• “How to take into account vulnerability in aid allocation criteria and lack of human capital as well: improving the performance based allocation” by Patrick Guillaumont, Sylviane Guillaumont Jeanneney and Laurent Wagner, FERDI Working Paper P13, October 2010
• “An Economic Vulnerability Index: Its Design and Use for International Development Policy” by Patrick Guillaumont, CERDI, CNRS and Université d’Auvergne, 2009