The United Nations Capital Development Fund and Least Developed Countries
In the late 1960s, the United Nations began paying special attention to Least Developed Countries (LDCs), recognizing that these countries are the most vulnerable in the developing world.
The International Development Strategy for the second United Nations Development Decade for the 1970s incorporated special measures in favour of LDCs, that later on led to the organization of the:
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First United Nations Conference on the LDCs in Paris in 1981, in which a comprehensive Substantial New Programme of Action (SNPA) for the 1980s for the LDCs was adopted, and later on, endorsed by the UN General Assembly in its resolution 36/194;
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Second United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC II) in Paris in 1990, adopting the Paris declaration and the Programme of Action for the LDCs for the 1990s;
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Third United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC III) in Brussels, hosted by the European Union, in 2001, in which the Brussels Declaration and the Programme of Action (POA) for the Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2001-2010 was adopted, and later on, endorsed by the UN General Assembly in its resolution 55/279.
In 1973, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution requesting United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) to concentrate its investments, first and foremost, in the LDCs. UNCDF is currently active on the ground in 38 of the 49 LDCs. Within this context, the UNCDF approach in its two Practice Areas (i.e. Local Development and Inclusive Finance) is to support the LDCs to pilot small-scale investments that can be replicated on a larger scale with the assistance of other development partners who can bring additional financial support.
As stated in the Report of the Secretary-General on the Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries, as a small-scale multilateral organization having LDCs as its primary target constituency, UNCDF plays a unique role in the implementation of the Brussels Programme of Action by providing over 70 per cent of its resources to LDC programmes through microfinance and decentralized public investment for local governance. The poverty orientation of UNCDF is well established. The Brussels Declaration afforded UNCDF a platform from which to launch a special appeal for increased resources to meet LDC demands.
For more information on LDCs, please visit the United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States.
