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Fourth UN Conference on Least Developed Countries to begin in Turkey

09 May 2011 [12:17] - TODAY.AZ
The Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC-IV) will take place in Istanbul between May 9 and 13.

Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement, "there are 48 least developed countries in the world with a population of nearly 900 million. These countries are struggling against chronical structural problems in their economy, development and human resources. There are 33 African, 14 Pacifician and a Latin American states among those countries."

"Turkey's increasing interest in global problems, its determination to extend support to the least developed countries, its policies towards Africa and Latin America, its position as a rising donor country and a reliable partner, its G-20 membership and its European Union full membership perspective played a significant role in its being chosen as the host country of such an important UN conference," it said.
The Ministry said that, at the end of the event, the Istanbul Action Plan and a final statement would be signed.

"All UN-member states have been invited to the conference by President Abdullah Gul, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. We expect nearly 50 heads of state and government, ministers from 75 countries, deputies ministers from 30 countries and some 10 thousand participants to attend the conference. Also, chairmen and deputy chairmen of 36 international organizations will be in attendance at the conference," it said.
"Istanbul's Lutfi Kirdar Congress Center will be the venue of the conference," it said.

"The opening ceremony will take place at 9:00 a.m. on May 9 under the leadership of President Gul. Following the ceremony, President Gul and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will host a joint news conference. Prime Minister Erdogan will host the Investment and Partnership High-Level meeting over a luncheon. Heads of state and government, ministers, parliamentarians and businessmen will partake in the luncheon. President Gul will host a banquet in honor of the guests at the Ciragan Palace later in the same day," it said.

The Ministry said that a series of special meetings would take place on the sidelines of the conference.
"The Civil Society Forum will begin on May 8. The conference will also feature a Business Forum and a Trade Fair to bring together Turkish and foreign businessmen. The fair will be opened by Davutoglu at the Congress Center on May 9. President Gul, Prime Minister Erdogan and Foreign Minister Davutoglu will hold bilateral talks with their counterparts on the sidelines of the conference," the Ministry added.

In 1971, the international community recognized as the Least Developed Countries a category of countries distinguished not only by widespread poverty, but also by the structural weakness of those countries' economic, institutional and human resources, often compounded by geographical handicaps. The group, comprising 25 countries at the time has been described by the United Nations as "the poorest and weakest segment of the international community" whose economic and social development presents a major challenge both for them and for their development partners.

The UN General Assembly convened the First United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries in Paris in 1981 to respond to the special needs of the LDCs. To continue the focus on the need for special measures for those countries, the General Assembly convened the Second United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries, also in Paris, in 1990. The third conference was held in Brussels in 2001.

UN's head arrives in Turkey to attend conference

The head official of the United Nations arrived in Istanbul on Saturday to participate in the "4th UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC-IV)" to begin on Monday.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, together with Turkish President Abdullah Gul, will make the opening remarks of the conference which will be held at Istanbul's Lutfi Kirdar International Congress Center between May 9 and 13.

About 60 heads of state or government and 100 ministers are expected to attend the UN conference.

Two papers, a political declaration and an action plan, are expected to be adopted at the end of the conference in order to pave the way for a road map for activities of the next decade.

There are 48 least developed countries in the world with a population of 950 million. There are 33 African, 14 Pacifician and a Latin American states among those countries.


/World Bulletin/
URL: http://www.today.az/news/regions/85852.html

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