Follow-Up to the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries

A/RES/80/150View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A document of the General Assembly, under agenda item 21a Follow-up to the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries, published in 2025.

What else is in this group?

15 documents · 2013–2025

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2025	A/RES/80/150	Follow-up to the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries	9,145	–
2024	A/RES/79/218	Follow-up to the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries	7,441	–
2023	A/RES/78/233	Follow-up to the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries	6,939	–
2022	A/RES/77/177	Follow-up to the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries	5,661	–
2022	A/RES/76/216	Follow-up to the 4th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries	6,097	–

This group bundles related documents that are not individually ordered.

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

9 entities

(Sub-)Programme	Title	Total mandates cited	Expenditure
Subprogramme 6	Economic analysis and policy	24
Programme 15	Economic and social development in africa	165
Programme 18	Economic and social development in latin america and the caribbean	234
Programme 16	Economic and social development in asia and the pacific	254
Subprogramme 6	—	45	Unavailable

Historical expenditure covers the complete programme or subprogramme, not this mandate. For an overview of all UN entities and programmes, see UN entities and programmes.

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

9 entities

(Sub-)Programme	Title	Total mandates cited	Expenditure
Subprogramme 6	Economic analysis and policy	24	—
Programme 15	Economic and social development in africa	165	—
Programme 18	Economic and social development in latin america and the caribbean	234	—
Programme 16	Economic and social development in asia and the pacific	254	—
Subprogramme 6	—	45	—

Historical expenditure covers the complete programme or subprogramme, not this mandate. For an overview of all UN entities and programmes, see UN entities and programmes.

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

2 reports · 2026

Year	Symbol	Title		Mandate resolution
2026	A/81/342 E/2026/80	Follow-up to the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries report of the Secretary-General		A/RES/80/150
2026	A/81/324	Work of the Technology Bank for the Least Developed Countries report of the Secretary-General		A/RES/80/150

What subjects does this mandate have?

11 subjects

Conferences Covid-19 Development Assistance Development Finance Early Warning Systems Economic Cooperation Among Developing Countries Graduation Least Developed Countries Programme Implementation Recovery Universities and Colleges

What’s in this document?

95 operative paragraphs

Takes note of the reports of the Secretary-General on the follow-up to the Fifth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries¹⁴ and on an online university for least developed countries or other equivalent platform to support university-level science, technology, engineering and mathematics education in the least developed countries;¹⁵

¹⁴A/80/82-E/2025/63.

¹⁵A/80/426.

Calls upon the least developed countries, with the support of their development partners, to take action to implement the Doha Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries, including by developing an ambitious national implementation strategy regarding the Programme of Action and integrating its provisions into their national policies and development frameworks and conducting regular reviews with the full involvement of all key stakeholders;

Also calls upon the least developed countries, in cooperation with their development partners, to broaden their existing country-level review mechanisms and report dissemination, including those for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and the implementation of poverty reduction strategy papers, nationally determined contributions, United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks and the existing consultative mechanisms, to cover the review of the Doha Programme of Action and extend them to all least developed countries;

Calls upon development partners and all other relevant actors to implement the Doha Programme of Action by integrating it into their respective national cooperation policy frameworks, programmes and activities, as appropriate, to ensure enhanced, predictable and targeted support to the least developed countries, as set out in the Programme of Action, and the delivery of their commitments, and to consider appropriate measures to overcome shortfalls or shortcomings, if any;

Invites the United Nations system, including the governing bodies of the United Nations funds and programmes and other multilateral organizations, including the World Bank Group, the International Monetary Fund and other international financial institutions, as well as the World Trade Organization, to contribute to the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action and to integrate it into their programmes of work, as appropriate and in accordance with their relevant mandates, and invites those organizations to participate fully in reviews of the Programme of Action at the national, subregional, regional and global levels;

Welcomes the work of the Inter-Agency Consultative Group for Least Developed Countries, led by the Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, notes the steps taken by the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination and the High-level Committee on Programmes in supporting the coordination and follow-up of the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action on a system-wide basis, and reiterates its invitation to the Secretary-General, in his capacity as Chair of the Chief Executives Board, to include the implementation of the Programme of Action in the agenda of the Board;

Recalls the strong commitment of the Heads of State and Government and representatives of States to advancing the concrete deliverables of the Doha Programme of Action with respect to exploring the feasibility, effectiveness and administrative modalities of a system of stockholding or alternative means, such as cash transfers, taking into account possible economic implications and risks, an online university or other equivalent platforms, an international investment support centre, a sustainable graduation support facility, and comprehensive multi-hazard crisis mitigation and resilience-building measures for least developed countries, and welcomes the efforts made towards their full operationalization, requests the Secretary-General to continue providing an update on progress towards operationalization of these deliverables within existing mandates and calls upon the development partners and other stakeholders to fully support the processes;

Decides to include the Doha Programme of Action as part of its review of the implementation of and follow-up to major United Nations conferences and summits, including the review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;

Notes with concern the estimates that by 2030 much of the world’s poor will live in the least developed countries, which indicate that the implementation of the 2030 Agenda is not on track, stresses the need for enhanced global support for the least developed countries to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, as well as ensuring that no one is left behind, and further recognizes the importance of enhancing good governance at all levels by strengthening democratic processes, institutions and the rule of law, increasing efficiency, coherence, transparency and participation, achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls, reducing inequalities, protecting and promoting human rights, reducing corruption and strengthening the capacity of Governments of the least developed countries to play an effective role in their economic and social development;

Welcomes the adoption of resolution 79/226 of 19 December 2024 on the quadrennial comprehensive policy review of operational activities for development of the United Nations system, and urges the United Nations development system to continue to prioritize allocations to the least developed countries, in order to support their efforts to implement the 2030 Agenda in a coherent and integrated manner and ensure effective delivery of support and services to programme countries in accordance with national development policies, plans, priorities and needs and in line with the mandates of the entities of the United Nations development system, further urges the United Nations development system to continue to enhance its support for the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action, which is integral to the 2030 Agenda, and calls upon the entities of the United Nations development system to integrate and mainstream the Doha Programme of Action fully into their operational activities for development;

Expresses deep concern at the devastating impacts of the COVID‑19 pandemic on the least developed countries, takes note of the statement dated 28 April 2020 of the Group of Least Developed Countries on COVID‑19¹⁶ and commits to supporting its implementation, as appropriate, and invites development partners, international organizations and other stakeholders to support the least developed countries in their recovery efforts and continued implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, further highlighting the need for greater collaboration and partnerships at all levels to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, including the fulfilment of the least developed country-specific targets, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development, and the Sevilla Commitment adopted at the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, which is an integral part of the 2030 Agenda;

¹⁶See A/74/843, annex.

Expresses its concern that the world is in the midst of a highly challenging environment in which global sustainable development prospects continue to diverge, with 35 per cent of targets on track or displaying moderate progress, while progress on 48 per cent of the targets is insufficient, and 18 per cent of the targets show regression from the 2015 baseline, underscoring the urgent need for intensified efforts to put the Sustainable Development Goals on course, and expresses further concern that the increased pressure on food, energy and finance, elevated inflation, rising global interest rates, tightened financial conditions, high indebtedness, disruptions in supply chains, and geopolitical tensions and conflicts, together with the adverse impacts of climate change, biodiversity loss and digital divides, have exacerbated challenges for many countries in addition to those associated with COVID‑19 recovery, increasing hunger, and all forms of malnutrition and poverty and inequality; and analysis of the most recent data reveals that the least developed countries are not on track to meet the targets of the Doha Programme of Action and the Sustainable Development Goals;

Welcomes the Secretary-General’s efforts to address the SDG financing gap through an SDG stimulus; and reiterates the commitment to advance the Secretary-General’s proposal, in a timely manner through discussions at the United Nations as well as other relevant forums and institutions, to tackle the high cost of debt and rising risks of debt distress, to enhance support to developing countries and to massively scale up affordable long-term financing for development and expand contingency financing to countries in need;

Reaffirms that the least developed countries, as the most vulnerable group of countries, need enhanced global support to overcome the structural challenges, as well as impacts from pandemics and other health emergencies, conflicts and climate change and the deteriorating situation of food security, lack of access to finance and energy, and increased poverty, that they face in implementing the 2030 Agenda, and in this regard calls upon the international community to prioritize and strengthen support from all sources to facilitate sustained recovery and rebuilding and the coordinated implementation and coherent follow-up to and monitoring of the Doha Programme of Action, the 2030 Agenda, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the Sevilla Commitment in the least developed countries;

Recognizes that domestic public and private resources, including at the subnational level, supplemented by international assistance and foreign direct investment, as appropriate, will be critical for the realization of sustainable development and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals; and that the 2030 Agenda, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the Sevilla Commitment acknowledge the centrality of domestic resources mobilization, underscored by the principle of national ownership;

Welcomes the commitment of development partners to ensuring the fulfilment of their respective official development assistance commitments to the least developed countries, ensuring the alignment of aid with the least developed countries’ national priorities and increasing the alignment of aid with the least developed countries’ national systems and procedures, also welcomes the decision by the European Union by which it reaffirms its collective commitment to achieving the target of 0.7 per cent of gross national income for official development assistance within the time frame of the 2030 Agenda and to reach 0.20 per cent of gross national income for official development assistance to the least developed countries within the time frame of the 2030 Agenda, expresses concern that, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, official development assistance flows from official donors fell by 7.1 per cent in 2024, with official development assistance flows to least developed countries falling by 2.6 per cent in 2024, the first decrease in official development assistance since 2019, encourages official development assistance providers to consider setting a target to provide at least 0.20 per cent of gross national income for official development assistance to the least developed countries, is encouraged by those that are allocating at least 50 per cent of their official development assistance to the least developed countries, and calls upon the development partners to continue their development assistance to the least developed countries in their efforts to overcome ongoing crises;

Commends the surpassing of 100 billion United States dollars of special drawing rights and welcomes the global ambition to voluntarily channel 100 billion dollars of special drawing rights to developing and least developing countries, calls upon Member States with strong external positions to consider the voluntary channelling of special drawing rights to countries in need, particularly to the least developed countries, in a timely manner, including through the International Monetary Fund Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust, welcomes the operationalization of the International Monetary Fund Resilience and Sustainability Trust as a new mechanism to voluntarily channel special drawing rights to provide affordable long-term financing to the least developed countries and other vulnerable countries, with due consideration to national legal frameworks, and also welcomes the ongoing exploration of viable options to voluntarily channel special drawing rights through multilateral development banks; and calls for an urgent voluntary rechannelling of special drawing rights to countries most in need, including through multilateral development banks, while respecting relevant legal frameworks and preserving the reserve asset character of special drawing rights; and exploring ways for future allocations of special drawing rights to benefit those countries most in need;

Notes that the global macroeconomic outlook remains highly uncertain, and is particularly bleak for many developing countries, including a large number of least developed countries, faced with significantly higher borrowing costs, growing debt service burdens and tight fiscal constraints, and that such a finance divide will, if left unaddressed, translate into a lasting sustainable development divide; and calls for improved international debt mechanisms to support debt review, debt payment suspensions, and debt restructuring, as appropriate, with an expansion of support and eligibility to vulnerable countries in need;

Calls upon official creditors to make long-term sustainable financing available to least developed countries through grants and concessional funding and to offer more fixed-interest lending at low interest rates, emphasizing that this is part of a mix of financing approaches that also include grants;

Stresses the urgency of enhancing ambition for climate action in the implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement in relation to climate mitigation, adaptation and the provision of the means of implementation, especially finance to developing countries; urges the implementation of the decisions adopted at the twenty-seventh session of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention, held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt; recalls its commitment to take concrete steps toward the operationalization of the new funding arrangements for responding to loss and damage, including the fund, by the twenty-eighth session; commits to continuing work to accelerate action to address climate change; and in this regard takes note of the first global stocktake of the Paris Agreement that took place at the twenty-eighth session held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and recalls the decisions on the new collective quantified goal on climate finance agreed in Baku at the twenty-ninth session of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention;

Notes with concern that the current provision of climate finance for adaptation remains insufficient to respond to worsening climate change impacts in developing country Parties and recognizes the importance of the adequacy and predictability of adaptation finance, welcomes that the Parties¹⁷ urged developed country Parties to urgently and significantly scale up their provision of climate finance, technology transfer and capacity-building for adaptation so as to respond to the needs of developing country Parties as part of a global effort, including for the formulation and implementation of national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, also recognizes that many least developed countries face challenges in gaining direct access to international public finance owing to a lack of technical capacity, supports the provision of assistance to least developed countries in preparing bankable projects and creating enabling environments, and encourages further efforts to enhance access to finance;

¹⁷United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and/or Paris Agreement.

Underlines the need for reinforcing the existing comprehensive multi‑hazard early warning system and comprehensive multi-hazard crises mitigation and resilience-building measures, including comprehensive disaster risk financing strategies for the least developed countries aligned with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 as a key instrument to build resilience against and mitigate the impacts of various shocks, and the commitment to making the best use of existing initiatives, providing support for capacity-building for adaptation planning and implementation, and technical assistance to develop operational national risk information systems to support policymaking, including in the insurance sector, and takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on multi-hazard early warning systems in the least developed countries, as well as the comprehensive technical report entitled “Status of multi-hazard early warning systems in the least developed countries” prepared by the Office of the High Representative in cooperation with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction and the World Meteorological Organization;

Notes with concern that 486 million people in the least developed countries were without any access to electricity in 2022, which was almost two thirds of the total global population living without access to electricity, calls for urgent international action to address the inequalities in access to sustainable energy that are faced by the least developed countries, and encourages the doubling of international public finance and the mobilization of resources from all sources to meet the urgent need for investment in power generation and transmission;

Welcomes the progress made under the Secretary-General’s Early Warnings for All initiative, and invites the initiative to expand its coverage to include all least developed countries, which have acute needs and are the furthest behind;

Calls upon Member States, the broader United Nations system, civil society organizations and development partners across the public and private sectors to consider the recommendations contained in the report of the Secretary-General,¹⁸ aimed at accelerating action to address gaps and deliver people-centred and country-led, end-to-end multi-hazard early warning systems in the least developed countries;

¹⁸A/79/288.

Welcomes the adoption of resolution 78/322 of 13 August 2024 on the multidimensional vulnerability index, calls for ensuring that the least developed countries should be considered in the composition of the Independent Expert Advisory Panel, as appropriate, and recognizes the potential to further improve the index, inter alia, by considering additional indicators to be included in future iterations of the index as well as indicators for potential refinement or approval to effectively capture the vulnerabilities of all developing countries, including least developed countries;

Calls upon the developing countries, guided by the spirit of solidarity and consistent with their capabilities, to provide support for the effective implementation of the Doha Programme of Action in mutually agreed areas of cooperation within the framework of South-South and triangular cooperation, which is a complement to but not a substitute for North-South cooperation;

Underlines the importance of promoting an enabling business environment conducive to growth and development, the absence of corruption, a transparent and rules-based regulatory framework, simplifying business regulations and processes, reducing and streamlining administrative formalities, creating efficient national support mechanisms for micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises, improving supply chains, facilitating access to markets, reinforcing cooperation, building capacities to implement effective competition policies, and adopting open, transparent and clear regulatory frameworks for business and investment, with protection for property rights and land rights as appropriate and in accordance with national circumstances and consistent with international legal frameworks;

Urges the least developed countries and their development partners to make use of existing initiatives and programmes, such as the relevant ministerial decisions of the World Trade Organization on duty-free and quota-free market access for the least developed countries and on preferential rules of origin for those countries, as well as aid-for-trade, reiterates its commitment to increasing aid-for-trade support, in particular for the least developed countries, striving to allocate an increasing proportion of aid-for-trade to the least developed countries, in accordance with development cooperation effectiveness principles, welcomes additional cooperation among developing countries to that end, and encourages the least developed countries to mainstream trade in their national development plans;

Recognizes that the least developed countries face significant infrastructure gaps, including in the areas of transport, energy, water, sanitation and information and communications technology, and reaffirms the need to promote quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure and to enhance infrastructure connectivity with concrete actions and predictable financing, thereby maximizing synergies in infrastructure planning and development;

Reaffirms that the least developed countries are especially vulnerable to and disproportionately affected by the adverse effects of climate change, environmental degradation and other disasters, and recognizes the high importance of building resilience in the least developed countries through stepped-up capacity-building and finance for adaptation to climate change;

Recalls the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 and reaffirms that disaster-prone developing countries need particular attention in view of their high vulnerability and exposure to adverse climate change impacts, recognizes that the development and implementation of risk-informed plans, policies, programmes and investments are essential for sustainable development and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, also recognizes that the COVID‑19 pandemic has increased vulnerability to wider, growing risks, notes with serious concern the stark warnings contained in the recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and notes that the Sendai Framework provides guidance relevant to a sustainable recovery from COVID‑19 and also to identify and address underlying drivers of disaster risk in a systemic manner, further recognizes the health aspects of the Sendai Framework, and stresses the need for resilient health systems;

Recognizes the need for dealing with severe food insecurity and malnutrition in least developed countries, and calls upon Member States and other relevant stakeholders to keep food and agriculture supply chains functioning; and calls upon the international financial institutions to find urgent, affordable and timely solutions to support developing countries, in particular those highly indebted, in responding to the food security crisis and achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2, through, but not limited to, facilitating, as appropriate, access to debt relief and concessional finance, takes note of the second meeting of the School Meals Coalition, held in Fortaleza, Brazil, in September 2025, and welcomes the convening of the First Leaders’ Meeting of the Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty, held in Qatar in November 2025;

Takes note of the findings and recommendations of the reports of the Secretary-General¹⁹ exploring the feasibility, effectiveness and administrative modalities of a system of food stockholding for the least developed countries, takes note of the establishment of a task force to guide the preparation of a comprehensive feasibility study for the operationalization of the Food Stockholding Mechanism for the Least Developed Countries, with the ultimate goal of enhancing food security and resilience in these countries, and calls for consultations with relevant United Nations entities, including Rome-based agencies, Member States, regional and international organizations and other stakeholders on the preparation of the feasibility study;

¹⁹A/77/291 and A/79/540.

Recognizes that particular efforts are needed to ensure that all young people, including girls, enjoy equal access to lifelong learning opportunities and equal access to inclusive and quality education at all levels, inclusive of early childhood, primary, secondary and tertiary education, as well as technical and vocational training, notes with concern, in this regard, the lack of progress in closing gender gaps in access to, retention in and completion of secondary education, particularly for girls, recognizes the need to continue to provide and encourage, as appropriate, institutes of higher education to allocate places and scholarships for students and trainees from the least developed countries, in particular in the fields of science, technology, business management and economics, and to strengthen support for institutions in relation to gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls at the global, regional and national levels, and also recognizes that the least developed countries have the most to gain from sustainable development and utilizing the full skills and talents of their people, including women and girls;

Takes note of the findings of the report of the Secretary-General on an online university for least developed countries or other equivalent platform to support university-level science, technology, engineering and mathematics education in the least developed countries, welcomes the efforts made towards the operationalization of the deliverable, takes note of the recommendations towards the establishment of an online university or equivalent platform for least developed countries in accordance with the Doha Programme of Action, and looks forward to further progress on its operationalization;

Recognizes the need to support least developed countries in building capacity and a framework to scale up the development, deployment and sustainable utilization of emerging technologies for the Sustainable Development Goals, including strengthening of digital literacy and skills, as part of efforts to bridge digital and knowledge divides, as a prerequisite for inclusive participation in the digital economy, and to provide necessary financial and technical support to least developed countries to establish and strengthen national and regional science institutes to increase their capacity for research and development in science, technology and innovations and promote the adaptation and application of modern technologies for domestic uses;

Supports the Technology Bank for the Least Developed Countries as a focal point for the least developed countries to strengthen their science, technology and innovation capacity towards building sustainable productive capacities and promoting structural economic transformation, also supports the Technology Bank in strengthening the science, technology and innovation capacity of least developed countries for structural transformation and productive capacity development, invites Member States, as well as international organizations, foundations and the private sector, to provide voluntary financial and in-kind resources to the Technology Bank in order to enhance its capacity and effectiveness, and to fulfil its mandate and decides to strengthen collaboration among Governments, the private sector and academia to advance science, technology and innovation research and development, build inclusive digital economies and bridge the digital divide, including by facilitating technology transfer on mutually agreed terms; encourages least developed countries to engage with development partners through the Technology Bank, including by utilizing the technology needs assessments; and takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on the work of the Technology Bank for the Least Developed Countries²⁰ and also decides to include the topic “Report on the work of the Technology Bank for the Least Developed Countries” under the sub-item entitled “Follow-up to the Fifth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries” at its eighty-first session, and requests the Secretary-General to submit a report for its consideration;

²⁰A/80/355.

Reaffirms its commitment to implementing the decision contained in the Addis Ababa Action Agenda to adopt and implement investment promotion regimes for the least developed countries, and reiterates the decision²¹ to provide financial and technical support for project preparation and contract negotiation, advisory support for investment-related dispute resolution, access to information on investment facilities, improving enabling environments, and risk insurance and guarantees such as through the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency;

²¹Resolution 69/313, annex, para. 46.

Reiterates the commitment at the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development that, building on the feasibility study of the Secretary-General, it supports the establishment and operationalization of an international investment support centre for the least developed countries;

Takes note of the update by the Secretary-General on an international investment support centre for the least developed countries;²²

²²A/80/95.

Looks forward to the final recommendations from the pilot projects under the feasibility study for the international investment support centre, as part of the report of the Secretary-General for its consideration at its eighty-first session;

Recognizes that increasing participation, supporting the empowerment of women, youth and civil society and strengthening collective action will contribute to the eradication of poverty and the achievement of sustainable development, further reaffirms that achieving gender equality, the empowerment of all women and girls and the full realization of the human rights of all people is essential to achieving sustained, inclusive and equitable economic growth and sustainable development, and reiterates the need for gender mainstreaming, including targeted actions and investments in the formulation and implementation of all financial, economic, environmental and social policies in the least developed countries;

Congratulates those countries that have met the criteria for graduation from least developed country status, notes with appreciation that 6 countries have graduated since 2011, another 4 have been designated to graduate by 2027 and 10 others have met the graduation criteria at least once, invites those countries to start the preparations for their graduation by formulating a smooth transition strategy, and requests all relevant organizations of the United Nations system, led by the Office of the High Representative, to extend the necessary support in this regard in a coordinated manner, through the full operationalization of the Sustainable Graduation Support Facility (iGRAD), while calling upon Member States to support this initiative with voluntary contributions;

Reiterates its conviction that no country graduating from the least developed country category should have its development progress disrupted or reversed, welcomes the fact that the United Nations graduation process helps to ensure that no graduating country has its special and differential treatment measures and exemptions reduced abruptly, invites development and trading partners to consider extending to graduated countries trade preferences previously made available as a result of least developed country status, or reducing them in a phased manner in order to avoid their abrupt reduction, notes that the Group of Least Developed Countries put forward various proposals at the World Trade Organization, pertaining to, among other things, trade-related challenges and those related to the smooth transition of the countries graduating from the least developed country category and seeks to further examine these issues, and calls upon the development partners to continue to provide, as appropriate, special climate change-related finance and technological support to graduated countries so as to support action towards the achievement of the goals of the Paris Agreement and for a period consistent with their vulnerabilities, sustainable development needs and other national circumstances and emerging challenges;

Underlines the importance of integrating support for graduating and graduated countries into the relevant work programmes of the entities of the United Nations development system in the light of the increasing number of graduating countries and their need for continued support from the United Nations development system;

Recognizes that the preparatory period before graduation is crucial for graduating countries to prepare their national smooth transition strategy, and invites bilateral, regional and multilateral development partners to support the development, preparation, and implementation of countries’ smooth transition strategies, including by extending least developed country-specific international support measures and appropriate incentives in accordance with the Doha Programme of Action;

Takes note of the benefits of updating the existing General Assembly resolutions on smooth transition, and decides to establish, within existing resources, an open-ended ad hoc working group of Member States on the smooth transition for countries graduating from the category of least developed countries to carry out an inclusive and transparent process to review and update the existing resolutions on smooth transition and support to graduating least developed countries and recently graduated countries;

Recommits to take action to strengthen international, national and local data systems efforts to collect high-quality, timely, relevant, disaggregated and reliable data on Sustainable Development Goals progress and to intensify efforts to strengthen data and statistical capacities in developing countries, in particular the least developed countries;

Recognizes that the activities relating to the least developed countries carried out within the Secretariat need to be further coordinated and consolidated in order to ensure the effective monitoring and follow-up of the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action, led by the Office of the High Representative, and to provide well-coordinated support to realizing, inter alia, the target of enabling 15 additional least developed countries to meet the criteria for graduation by 2031;

Also recognizes that, over the years, the responsibilities of the Office of the High Representative have increased considerably in their scope and complexity and that, in addition to its original mandate, the requirement to undertake research and analytical work, monitor sectoral policy developments at the level of intergovernmental processes, follow up on actions taken at the national level, further strengthen the network of national focal points of least developed countries, develop operational guidelines for United Nations entities support to countries in conflict and post-conflict situations and support the graduating and graduated countries have increased;

Calls upon the development partners, international financial institutions and the United Nations system to extend the necessary support for the full and effective operationalization of the Sustainable Graduation Support Facility (iGRAD), in line with the mandate of the Doha Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries, recognizing its vital role in providing technical assistance, advisory services and capacity development to graduating and graduated least developed countries, and underlining that enhanced international support to iGRAD can play a critical role in ensuring smooth transition, sustaining development gains, and addressing vulnerabilities arising from climate change, economic shocks and other global crises;

Recommends that the United Nations development system organizations develop internal guidelines on how to translate the stated priorities for least developed countries into their budget allocations or their capacity-development projects, and invites the World Bank Group, the International Monetary Fund, other international financial and development institutions to provide tailored programmes to support the least developed countries; further invites international organizations to consider how the Doha Programme of Action may inform their efforts; and also requests the United Nations development system to further expand the use of the least developed country category in programming and budgeting;

Invites Governments, intergovernmental and non‑governmental organizations, major groups and other donors to contribute in a timely manner to the trust fund in support of activities undertaken by the Office of the High Representative to support the implementation, follow-up and monitoring of the Doha Programme of Action and the participation of the representatives from the least developed countries in the high-level political forum on sustainable development of the Economic and Social Council as well as in other relevant forums, and in this regard expresses its appreciation to those countries that have made voluntary contributions to the trust fund;

Expresses its profound gratitude to the Government and the people of the State of Qatar for hosting the second part of the Fifth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries and for providing all the necessary support to the Conference and its follow-up processes;

Expresses its appreciation to all development partners for the support provided to the least developed countries and for the continued commitment of support to the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries, including its deliverables;

Recalls paragraph 309 of the Doha Programme of Action, in which the General Assembly was invited to consider conducting a comprehensive high-level midterm review of the implementation of the Programme of Action in 2026;

Welcomes the generous offer of the Government of Qatar to host the comprehensive high-level midterm review;

Decides that the comprehensive high-level midterm review:

Shall be held in Doha, State of Qatar, for a period of three days, from 25 to 27 March 2027, consisting of opening and closing plenary meetings and four additional plenary meetings, as well as four parallel thematic round-table meetings;

Shall be held at the highest possible political level;

Shall result in an intergovernmentally negotiated and agreed outcome in the form of a political declaration;

Shall ensure that the summaries of the plenary meetings and other deliberations of the review are included in the report of the review;

Also decides that the scope of the midterm comprehensive global review shall be as follows:

To undertake a comprehensive review of the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action by the least developed countries and their development partners, share best practices and lessons learned and identify obstacles and constraints encountered and actions and initiatives needed to overcome them, as well as new challenges and emerging issues;

To reaffirm the global commitment to address the special needs of the least developed countries made at the Fifth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries and to further strengthen the global partnership for development for least developed countries in all priority areas of the Doha Programme of Action in order to ensure the timely, effective and full implementation of the Programme of Action during the remainder of the Decade, while taking into account the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as it relates to the least developed countries;

Underlines that there will be two regional-level preparatory meetings, taking advantage of the biennial regional meetings already scheduled for 2026, as appropriate, one in collaboration with the Economic Commission for Africa, which will include Haiti, and the other in collaboration with the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, which will include Yemen, with the regional-level meetings to be supported by broad-based and inclusive country-level preparations, and that the outcomes of the regional-level preparatory meetings should be considered in the comprehensive high-level midterm review;

Requests the Secretary-General to convene a United Nations system high-level event during the comprehensive high-level midterm review, with a view to ensuring the full mobilization of the United Nations system in support of the least developed countries and the coordinated and timely implementation by the United Nations system of the Doha Programme of Action and the outcome of the review;

Requests the President of the General Assembly and the President of the Economic and Social Council, within existing mandate and resources, to jointly organize, in 2026, a one-day special thematic event, with the participation of Member States, observer States and observers, non‑governmental organizations, civil society, the private sector and academic institutions, in order to provide input to the comprehensive high-level midterm review;

Requests the President of the General Assembly at its eighty-first session to appoint two co-facilitators, one from a developed country and one from a developing country, to oversee and direct informal intergovernmental consultations on all issues relating to the review and its preparatory process within existing mandate and resources;

Requests the co-facilitators to present a concise and action-oriented draft political declaration, no later than 30 November 2026 and in advance of the preparatory meeting, prepared on the basis of inputs from the national and regional preparatory meetings, the report of the Secretary-General and other inputs, including those from Member States;

Decides that the midterm review shall elect from among the representatives of participating States the following officers: a President and an ex officio Vice-President from the host country, and nine Vice-Presidents, one of whom shall be designated as Rapporteur;

Also decides that the Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States shall serve as the Secretary-General of the midterm review and shall be responsible for making the necessary arrangements for carrying out the work of the midterm review; and further underlines that the Office of the High Representative, as the focal point, in accordance with mandates given by the General Assembly in its resolution 56/227 of 24 December 2001, has the responsibility for ensuring that the preparations are carried out effectively and efficiently and for mobilizing and coordinating the active involvement of the organizations of the United Nations system;

Further decides that the thematic meetings will focus on identifying concrete suggestions to further strengthen the global partnership for development for least developed countries in all priority areas of the Doha Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries in order to ensure the timely, effective and full implementation of the Programme of Action during the remainder of the decade, while taking into account synergy and coherence of the Programme of Action with global processes, including the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Sevilla Commitment of the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, and the Paris Agreement;

Decides that the organizational arrangements of the round tables will be as follows:

Each round table will be co-chaired by two Chairs, one from the least developed countries and one from the development partners, to be appointed by the President of the midterm review, from among representatives at the level of Head of State or Government and/or at the ministerial level;

The Secretary-General of the midterm review will select up to four panellists for each of the round tables, and the panel discussion will be followed by an interactive debate among States and other relevant representatives and stakeholders;

The round tables will be interactive and open to all conference participants; there will be no prepared list of speakers; at the discretion of the Chair or Chairs, priority in the order of speakers will be given to those speaking at the level of Head of State or Government or at the ministerial level; the round tables will aim to achieve a balance among speakers from all stakeholders; and, in order to provide for maximum participation, interventions should not exceed three minutes;

Also decides that summaries of the round-table meetings will be presented orally by the Co-Chair at the closing plenary meeting;

Requests the co-facilitators to organize a two-day preparatory meeting in New York, to be convened by the President of the General Assembly, within existing resources, no later than January 2027, with a view to considering the draft outcome document;

Decides that all negotiations on the outcome document shall be held at United Nations Headquarters in New York, and strongly encourages Member States to conclude negotiations on the draft outcome document in advance of the comprehensive high-level midterm review;

Also decides that the comprehensive high-level midterm review and its preparatory process shall be open to participation by all States Members of the United Nations or members of the specialized agencies and observers in the General Assembly, and that the rules of procedure of the functional commissions of the Economic and Social Council, as well as the supplementary arrangements established for the Commission on Sustainable Development by the Council in its decisions 1993/215 of 12 February 1993 and 1995/201 of 8 February 1995, shall apply;

Invites the host country to consider hosting, with the assistance of the Office of the High Representative, within its existing mandate and resources, meetings of various stakeholders on the margins of the comprehensive midterm review, and encourages relevant representatives of Member States and relevant stakeholders to support and participate in the meetings;

Invites the Economic and Social Council to consider the issue of the comprehensive high-level midterm review as part of its programme of work, including during the operational activities for development segment and high-level political forum on sustainable development in 2026;

Requests the organs, organizations, funds and programmes of the United Nations system to undertake sectoral appraisals in their respective fields of competence on the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action, with special emphasis on areas where implementation has remained insufficient, and to make proposals for new measures, as necessary, as further inputs to the preparation for the comprehensive high-level midterm review, and in this regard affirms that appropriate inter-agency meetings should be convened in order to ensure the full mobilization and coordination of the entire United Nations system, including the Bretton Woods institutions;

Emphasizes the importance of country-level inputs to the preparatory process for the comprehensive high-level midterm review, and in this context calls upon the least developed countries to undertake their national reviews on the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action, in close collaboration with the Office of the High Representative and with the United Nations resident coordinators and country teams in the least developed countries as part of the overall comprehensive high-level midterm review, with a particular focus on progress, obstacles, constraints, actions and measures necessary to further implementation of the Programme;

Reiterates the critical importance of the full and effective participation of the least developed countries in the comprehensive high-level midterm review at the national, regional and global levels, stresses that adequate resources should be provided, and in this regard requests the Secretary-General to mobilize extrabudgetary resources and calls upon Member States, and invites other multilateral development partners, intergovernmental and non‑governmental organizations and the private sector, to make voluntary contributions to the trust fund established by the Secretary-General in accordance with resolution 59/244 of 22 December 2004, including to cover the cost of the participation of two government representatives from each least developed country in the review and the preparatory meeting;

Stresses, while recognizing the intergovernmental nature of the comprehensive midterm review, the importance of the effective, well-structured and broad participation of all relevant stakeholders, including parliamentarians, civil society and the private sector, in the midterm review, including national and regional reviews and thematic preparations, as well as in the interactive thematic round tables and side events during the midterm review, underlines that intergovernmental mechanisms at the global and regional levels, including those of the United Nations regional commissions, as well as relevant substantive material and statistical data, should be effectively utilized in the review process, and decides:

To invite non‑governmental organizations that are in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council to register with the Secretariat in order to participate in the comprehensive midterm review;

To invite other relevant stakeholders, including organizations and bodies of the United Nations system, international financial institutions, civil society organizations, the private sector, other international bodies and other non‑governmental organizations to participate as observers in the midterm review;

To request the President of the General Assembly to draw up a list of representatives of other relevant non‑governmental organizations, civil society organizations, academic institutions and the private sector who may participate in the midterm review, taking into account the principles of transparency and of equitable geographical representation and with due regard for gender parity and to submit the proposed list to Member States for their consideration on a non‑objection basis and bring the list to the attention of the Assembly for a final decision by the Assembly on participation in the midterm review;

Calls upon all Member States to take a positive interest in the preparation of the comprehensive high-level midterm review and to be represented at a high level in the plenary meeting of the review, with a view to reaching a successful outcome;

Stresses the importance of the effective participation of all relevant stakeholders, including parliamentarians, civil society and the private sector, in the comprehensive high-level midterm review and its preparatory process, in accordance with Economic and Social Council resolution 1996/31 of 25 July 1996;

Requests the Secretary-General, with the assistance of relevant organizations and bodies of the United Nations system, including the Department of Global Communications of the Secretariat, in collaboration with the Office of the High Representative, to take the measures necessary to intensify their public information efforts and other appropriate initiatives to enhance public awareness on the outcome of the midterm review, including by highlighting its programme of action, objectives, key deliverables and significance;

Also requests the Secretary-General to prepare and submit to the General Assembly at its eighty-first session, on an exceptional basis, a comprehensive report on the implementation of the Doha Programme of Action over the past four years, and the implementation of the present resolution, highlighting progress made on the Programme’s targets and indicators, challenges encountered and recommendations for the effective implementation of the Programme during the remainder of the decade; and decides to include in the provisional agenda of its eighty-first session, under the item entitled “Groups of countries in special situations”, the sub-item entitled “Follow-up to the Fifth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries.”

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