29 July 2011
Upon recommendation of CSTD-14, the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) took note of the outcome of the Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC-IV) held in Istanbul in May 2011, and extended its appreciation to the Turkish Government for its initiative to set up an International Science, Technology, and Innovation Center.
Dedicated to Least Developed Countries (LDCs), the Center will serve as a “technology bank" to help these countries access and use critical technologies. Consultations are underway between UNCTAD and TÜBITAK on the establishment of the Center.
At the LDC-IV, Turkey also announced the establishment of an International Agriculture Center dedicated to LDCs, which will share best practices in agricultural production and foster transfer of technology in modern irrigation techniques and seed, sapling, and fertilizer production, as well as technical assistance in land use management, afforestation, reforestation, erosion control, and combating desertification.
In addition to supporting the new international centers with financing and human resources, starting in 2012, Turkey will allocate USD 200 million annually to LDCs for technical cooperation projects, programs, and scholarships. Turkey also pledged to support the Turkish private sector in increasing direct investment to LDCs to USD 5 billion by 2015 and USD 10 billion by 2020.
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