Speaking at Monday’s Parliamentary Forum of the Third UN Conference on LLDCs, senior UN leaders stressed that political will, matched with national legislative action, is essential if a new decade-long development plan is to make a real difference.
There are 32 such countries globally, home to over half a billion people. Many are also among the world’s least developed, hindered by high transport costs, limited access to global markets, and heightened vulnerability to climate impacts.
Cost burden
“These challenges are persistent and structural,” said High Representative Rabab Fatima who leads the office championing LLDCs. “They stem not just from being landlocked but from limited infrastructure, narrow export bases, and lack of access to finance.”
The figures, she said, tell a stark story: LLDCs account for seven per cent of the world’s population but only one per cent of global GDP. Trade costs are 30 per cent higher than for coastal states. Just 61 per cent of LLDC populations have electricity access, compared to 92 per cent globally — and fewer than 40 per cent are connected to the internet.
“These are not just statistics. They reflect real human challenges,” said Ms. Fatima.
UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe
UN Secretary-General António Guterres (left) meets President Serdar Gurbangulyýewiç Berdimuhamedow of Turkmenistan, during his visit for the Third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries being held in Awaza.
Be ‘champions of change’
She described the Awaza Programme of Action as “a milestone” and “a clear roadmap” to help transform structural disadvantages into opportunities. But she stressed that delivering on its goals requires action at the national level.
“Parliaments have a decisive role,” Ms. Fatima said. She urged lawmakers to align national strategies with the programme, secure financing, promote trade and integration, support good governance, and form parliamentary groups dedicated to implementation.
“You are lawmakers, you are budget-makers — and champions of change. Your leadership is essential to ensure that the Awaza Programme delivers tangible and lasting results for the 600 million people of LLDCs,” she told delegates.
Foundational role
President of the UN General Assembly Philémon Yang echoed her message, highlighting that “parliaments are essential to translating global commitments into measurable national progress.”
He emphasised that parliaments provide the legal framework for development in areas like infrastructure, innovation, and trade — and that they also hold the purse strings for key sectors such as education, healthcare, and climate action.
Addressing the urgency of environmental responsibility, Mr. Yang cited the July 2025 advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which affirmed that climate action is a legal duty of all states.
Stronger cooperation
“Parliaments monitor government performance and ensure the efficient use of public funds,” Mr. Yang said. “Beyond policy and budgets, they are the bridge between the State and citizens.”
He also called for stronger inter-parliamentary cooperation — regionally and globally — to address the shared and specific challenges faced by LLDCs.
Concluding, Mr. Yang reaffirmed the UN General Assembly’s role as “the parliament of humanity,” committed to tracking progress and keeping LLDCs on the global development agenda.
“Let us strengthen this partnership between national parliaments and our global institutions,” he said, “so that we can deliver on the promise of sustainable development — a promise grounded in peace, prosperity, and dignity for everyone, everywhere.”