Contribution of UNCTAD to the implementation of the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries

The Trade and Development Board,

Having conducted deliberations at its annual review of progress in the implementation of the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2011–2020 (Istanbul Programme of Action),

1. Invites UNCTAD to strengthen its special focus on the trade and development needs of the least developed countries in achieving the goals of the Istanbul Programme of Action, with particular emphasis on building productive capacities and doubling their share in global exports;
    
2. Takes note of the successful graduation of Equatorial Guinea from the least developed country category in June 2017, as well as the progress achieved by several least developed countries that reached graduation thresholds;
    
3. Expresses concern that, in the six years since the adoption of the Istanbul Programme of Action, progress towards the majority of goals, which is necessary to significantly reduce extreme poverty and put those countries on the path of sustained economic growth and development, has been too slow; thus, significant efforts are required in the remaining three years of the decade for the goals of the Istanbul Programme of Action to be achieved;
    
4. Recognizes the crucial role of building productive capacities in reaching the Istanbul Programme of Action targets and achieving sustainable growth and poverty reduction in the least developed countries, and invites further efforts of all stakeholders in achieving the Istanbul Programme of Action and the related Sustainable Development Goals;
    
5. Urges the forthcoming Expert Meeting on Ways and Means of Improving the Implementation of Priority Areas Agreed in the Istanbul Programme of Action, on the areas of productive capacities and export, to be held in Geneva on 6 and 7 November 2017, to identify concrete policy recommendations to further the building of productive capacities and structural transformation in the least developed countries, thus enabling them to double their share in global exports by 2020;
    
6. Acknowledges the need for strengthening good governance at all levels, and enhancing legal frameworks for boosting investment;
    
7. Recognizes the need for least developed countries to strengthen domestic and regional market integration as an important factor for full integration in global value chains;
    
8. Encourages least developed countries to continue to prioritize education so as to empower youth to contribute to building productive capacity;
    
9. Encourages all stakeholders to work together to achieve the goal of 100 per cent access to the Internet in least developed countries through developing the necessary infrastructure so that they can take advantage of information technology for their economic growth;
    
10. Expresses appreciation to the members of the Development Assistance Committee who have met or exceeded the special target of providing between 0.15 and 0.20 per cent of their gross national income as aid to the least developed countries in 2015, and encourages others to make their best efforts to meet the agreed targets as contained in the Istanbul Programme of Action, underscoring the importance of enhancing the quality of aid to the least developed countries;
     
11. Notes that World Trade Organization members have made significant progress towards the goal of providing duty-free, quota-free market access on a lasting basis for all products for all least developed countries and further improvement in this direction would be welcomed; we welcome World Trade Organization members’ efforts to implement the decision on preferential rules of origins, as well as the least developed countries services waiver, as agreed at the Tenth Ministerial Conference in Nairobi;
     
12. Calls upon the UNCTAD secretariat to take initiatives on South–South cooperation for sharing the practical experiences of developing countries in industrialization and building productive capacities with the least developed countries to help them to benefit from the experience of other developing countries;
     
13. Invites all countries in a position to do so to contribute to the UNCTAD Trust Fund for Least Developed Countries.