UN panel sets up process to assess Bangladesh’s request to delay LDC graduation

The United Nations Committee for Development Policy (UN CDP), a panel that reviews least developed countries (LDCs) and recommends them for graduation, has set up a process to assess Bangladesh’s request to defer its graduation by three years, to 2029.

The panel discussed Bangladesh’s application at its 28th plenary session, which began on February 23 and ended today at the UN Headquarters in New York, Debapriya Bhattacharya, a member of the UN CDP, told The Daily Star.

Debapriya, who is also part of a team assessing the state of preparation of graduating LDCs under the UN CDP’s Enhanced Monitoring Mechanism (EMM), attended the meeting in New York.

“Acknowledging the receipt of the letter from Bangladesh, the panel has informed us of the process to assess the points made by the government. It may take a couple of weeks to receive the CDP’s decision. Then it will go to ECOSOC (UN Economic and Social Council) and subsequently to the UN General Assembly,” he said.

The assessment will consider whether “Bangladesh is in crisis” due to unanticipated and uncontrollable factors, Debapriya, also convenor of Citizen’s Platform for SDGs Bangladesh, added.

However, the decision on Bangladesh’s application will come from higher UN authorities later, he said.

Debapriya noted that Nepal and Lao PDR are also scheduled to graduate along with Bangladesh on November 24 this year. Only Bangladesh has applied for a three-year deferment.

The newly elected BNP-led government has requested the UN CDP to defer Bangladesh’s LDC graduation by three years to 2029, citing that the extension is vital for macroeconomic stabilisation and the implementation of the Smooth Transition Strategy (STS).

The government said that the preparatory period was severely disrupted by overlapping shocks, including the lingering effects of the pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, and instability in the Middle East.

Domestically, the letter cited financial sector irregularities, the July 2024 uprising, and the Rohingya crisis. These factors have slowed GDP growth, elevated inflation, and pressured foreign exchange reserves.

Additionally, governance challenges in the banking and capital markets have hindered poverty reduction.

While the previous interim cabinet aimed for graduation in November 2026, the current administration’s request aligns with concerns in the business community that immediate graduation could trigger a 14 percent export loss—approximately $8 billion annually—due to the withdrawal of preferential benefits and $1 billion in yearly incentives.