The lack of significant progress in reducing poverty in the world's 50 poorest and most vulnerable countries – even as they posted sharply improved economic performance – dominated discussions at the United Nations General Assembly's High-Level Meeting on the Least Developed Countries (LDCs).
Deputy Secretary-General Mark Malloch Brown told the meeting that although the least developed countries have experienced higher economic growth, greater exports and larger investment inflows over the past five years, and despite some progress on reducing maternal and child mortality and increasing universal primary enrolment, the progress has had “minimum impact where it is most needed: in the fight against extreme poverty.”
UN Under-Secretary-General Anwarul K. Chowdhury, who is also the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, acknowledged the economic growth but added that “the distribution at the grassroots level is not there.” He called for democratic governance to address the issue because “the poorest should have a voice in the decisions that affect them.”
This year's General Assembly meeting is reviewing progress on an agreement forged five years ago in Brussels aimed at assisting the LDCs. The meeting is expected to conclude tomorrow with a resolution reaffirming countries' commitments toward meeting the goals that were agreed in Brussels.
Mr. Chowdhury said although there had been increased support from the international community, and that assistance to the poorest countries had increased by 25 per cent, most of these countries will not be able to reach the UN-agreed Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), a set of targets for addressing a host of global ills by the year 2015.
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