Structural vulnerability and transformation: their links and the LDC5 Monitor consistency
March 06, 2024
↪ Identification of LDCs. FERDI’s work focuses on the rationale of the category and the improvement of LDC identification. The reference book Caught in a Trap, Identifying the least developed countries, published in English in 2009, presents the foundations of the LDC category and argues that they should have a special treatment, because they are poor countries facing severe structural handicaps to their development. Today, FERDI demonstrates that the category, still comprising 46 member countries, keeps its rationale, but its consistency could be strengthened by modernising the criteria used to identify LDCs and enhancing the role that vulnerability could play in these criteria (Guillaumont P, 2021 : The Rationale of the Least Developed Countries Category over Half a Century).
↪ Assessing the effectiveness of support measures taken in favor of LDCs. The book Out of the trap. Supporting the Least Developed Countries, is the first comprehensive assessment of the effectiveness of measures taken in favor of LDCs. It is a collective work with contributions by 10 academics. The book is being revised for a second edition.
↪ FERDI was a partner of the 2nd United Nations Forum on the Future of LDCs (Helsinki, March 2024). It was also paticipated in the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in Doha in March 2023, organising or leading several events.
↪ FERDI is involved in the launch of the LDC5 Monitor, a coalition of think tanks and institutions from both the Global North and South. This group aims to provide an independent analysis of the implementation of the Doha agenda, focusing on how it addresses the specific vulnerabilities of LDCs and contributes to their structural transformation. This initiative is supported by Finland and France and has received approval from UN-OHRLLS. As part of this initiative, FERDI will be particularly responsible for monitoring the vulnerability of LDCs.
↪ A new edition of the the book "Out of the Trap: Supporting the Least Developed Countries" is planned, with an afterword examining the impact of recent global crises on LDCs.
