The Trade and Development Board discussed at its meetings of 9 October progress made under the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2001-2010.
Delegations noted that in recent years many least developed countries (LDCs) had benefited from stronger growth, macroeconomic stability, debt relief and additional official development assistance. They had also achieved progress in such social areas as health and education. Nevertheless, their economies continued to specialize in a narrow range of basic products, and they continued to undergo shocks and crises. Domestic producers as a whole were not making improvements in productivity and value added, and such progress was essential if LDCs were to generate employment, raise household incomes and reduce poverty. Several speakers said extreme poverty in some LDCs was increasing and that hardly any were likely to achieve the Millennium Development Goals or the goals of the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries.
Delegations agreed that the global economy was increasingly knowledge-intensive; innovation had become a central economic activity; and therefore, the essential challenge for the LDCs was to create and improve institutions that enabled the efficient production and use of knowledge.
Delegations welcomed UNCTAD´s Least Developed Countries Report 2007. Its emphasis on the essential role of knowledge, technological learning and innovation in even the poorest countries and the related policy recommendations were seen as a significant and original contribution to research and policy analysis. Delegations expressed concern that those issues had been neglected in LDC policymaking in recent decades. Productive capacities and technological capabilities should be placed at the centre of national policies and poverty reduction strategies. There also was a need to improve the domestic regulations to spur innovation, and there was a need to inform society of the importance of science, technology and innovation and their role in poverty reduction.
Delegations welcomed recent increases in aid to social sectors but expressed concern about a low and declining share of aid targeted at improvements of production capabilities and infrastructure. Speakers from developing countries called for more such aid in both the agricultural and the non-agricultural sectors. They said it should support applied research and development and strengthen business-support institutions. Delegations welcomed efforts to build up trade-related capacities in LDCs. Several delegations drew attention to North-South and South-South programmes for training and capacity-building in LDCs.
While recognizing the importance of strengthening technological capacities, delegations said the challenge of doing so was daunting. They noted that international trade, foreign direct investment and licensing had produced little transfer of technology to LDCs. Another development hindering the spread and deepening of knowledge in the LDCs was "brain drain". Several delegations stressed the need to resolve this problem, through joint action of developing and developed countries.
Most participants agreed that the international intellectual property rights regime posed a serious challenge to LDCs´ access to knowledge, technological learning, and innovation. There were calls for the international community to consider further waivers and new, realistic deadlines for compliance with the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). It was suggested that "TRIPS-plus" provisions be excluded from bilateral or regional trade agreements and from conditions for accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). Countries were advised to balance public and private interests and producer and consumer considerations in designing their intellectual property regimes. Some speakers suggested that some areas of knowledge should be considered "essential" and access to them should not be restricted by intellectual property rights. Others, however, said that strong protection of intellectual property rights was essential for innovation and development, and therefore disagreed with the view in The Least Developed Countries Report 2007 that intellectual property rights could undermine technological catch-up in LDCs.
Delegations expressed their appreciation for UNCTAD´s research and analysis work on LDCs in general and encouraged the UNCTAD secretariat to expand that work. They also called for such analysis to be used as the basis for a more active policy dialogue with LDC Governments and United Nations agencies and donors. They added that the analysis could aid UNCTAD´s technical assistance in the field. Several delegations called for donors to continue supporting the Trust Fund for the Least Developed Countries, and said the Fund should have a wider donor base.
