Increased efforts are needed to eradicate extreme poverty by 2020 in the world's most vulnerable countries, according to the ‘State of Least Developed Countries 2014,' launched by the UN Office for LDCs, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (OHRLLS).
The report, which is subtitled 'Follow up of the Implementation of the Istanbul Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries,' identifies gender equality, institutional frameworks, infrastructure development, service delivery and external factors as critical in reducing LDCs' extreme poverty.
23 October 2014: Increased efforts are needed to eradicate extreme poverty by 2020 in the world’s most vulnerable countries, according to the ‘State of Least Developed Countries 2014,’ launched by the UN Office for LDCs, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (OHRLLS). The report, which is subtitled ‘Follow up of the Implementation of the Istanbul Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries,’ identifies gender equality, institutional frameworks, infrastructure development, service delivery and external factors as critical in reducing LDCs’ extreme poverty.
As a Special Theme, the 2014 report takes up ‘Extreme Poverty Eradication in the Least Developed Countries and the Post-2015 Development Agenda.’
LDCs are among the most vulnerable to external shocks, including climate, disaster and health-related threats and economic crises, according to the report. It shows the positive contribution of economic growth to poverty reduction, but underscores deepening inequality as a threat.
“There is still a long way for these countries to go, even to catch up with other developing countries,” Gyan Chandra Acharya, High Representative and head of OHRLLS, said at the report launch. Acharya said LDCs have shown mixed progress on the Istanbul Programme of Action’s (IPoA) goals and targets, with some continuing to face extreme poverty and others experiencing gains in education, health and internet and mobile phone access. The report finds that access to affordable, sustainable and modern forms of energy and the ability to generate, use and maintain technology and innovation remain limited in LDCs.
Greater access to land, finance and technology are critical to reducing inequality and boosting growth in LDCs, the report notes. It recognizes the potential of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s proposed international investment support center for LDCs and technology bank to upgrade LDCs’ productive capacity and leverage poverty eradication efforts.
The report recommends addressing LDCs’ extreme poverty in the post-2015 development agenda, noting that many LDCs’ will not achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015. It proposes LDC goals and targets on: productive capacity building, including through sustainable agriculture, energy, infrastructure and industrialization; food security and nutrition; agricultural productivity; health and sanitation; education access; energy services; institutions and developments; climate change; and international development cooperation.
The report further recommends, inter alia: national-level leadership to implement policies that address gender equality, improve service delivery and enable the poor to acquire investment assets; and ensuring that efforts to increase domestic revenue also reduce inequality.
Noting that data was only available for 29 out of 48 LDCs, the report stresses the importance of available, reliance data for policy formulation, implementation and monitoring. It recommends improving the capacity of LDC statistical agencies to collect, process, store and disseminate data, particularly disaggregated data.
OHRLLS and the Permanent Mission of Benin to the UN hosted a special event to launch the report at UN Headquarters in New York, US, on 23 October 2014. [UN Press Release] [Publication: State of the Least Developed Countries 2014] [Launch Event]