KATHMANDU, Sept 25: Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal has said that support focused on finance, climate justice, productive capacity and sustainable development is needed to turn international commitments made for least developed countries (LDCs) into action.
Addressing the annual ministerial meeting of foreign ministers from least developed countries at the UN headquarters in New York on Thursday, on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, he said LDCs are facing additional development challenges due to global crises.
According to the United Nations, although LDCs account for about 14 percent of the world's population, their share of global trade is less than 1.5 percent, making them extremely vulnerable to external shocks.
The meeting was held as Nepal's three-year term as chair of the LDC group was coming to an end. Referring to the devastating floods and landslides that hit Nepal's trans-Himalayan trade routes a few weeks ago as a "Himalayan tsunami," Khanal said the disaster highlighted the unequal climate risks faced by the poorest and most vulnerable countries in the LDC group, according to his Secretariat.
"This disaster that has come upon Nepal and Nepali people is not just a single Himalayan risk; it is a terrifying expression of the unequal climate risks that the poorest and most vulnerable countries in the LDC family face every day," he said.
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He said the floods claimed valuable human lives, blocked important trade routes, damaged bridges and infrastructure, and affected the livelihoods of a large number of communities. He paid tribute to those who lost their lives and expressed condolences to their grieving families.
Khanal said Nepal had worked over the past three years to implement the Doha Programme of Action and place LDC priorities at the centre of the global development agenda.
He said that while serving as chair of the group, Nepal worked with a commitment not to let the LDC agenda be marginalized in international decision-making processes.
“During our tenure, we focused on ensuring that the LDC agenda would never be neglected in international decision-making,” Khanal said.
He said a special summit on LDCs was held in collaboration with the Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States during the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development held in 2025.
Khanal said the effort helped include the LDCs' priorities in the "Seville Commitment," including concessional finance, financial sector expansion, debt sustainability and technology transfer.
Highlighting that Nepal had prioritized climate justice during its chairmanship of the LDC group, Khanal said that although LDCs contribute little to global greenhouse gas emissions, they are experiencing some of the most severe impacts of climate-related disasters.
“LDCs contribute negligibly to global greenhouse gas emissions, but our communities have suffered the most serious damage. We have called for sufficient grant-based climate finance, the immediate capitalization of the loss and damage fund, and a multi-hazard early warning system for everyone,” he said.
Khanal said Nepal had also prioritized sustainable and irreversible graduation from the LDC category.
According to the United Nations, Nepal, Bangladesh and Laos are among the LDCs currently in the process of graduating.
"Crossing a certain economic indicator isn't the ultimate goal of upgrading the level. It should be strengthened with the ability to handle production capacity and external as well as climate-related shocks," he said.
Khanal said Nepal would hand over the chairmanship of the LDC group to Gambia and expressed Nepal's full and continued support to the new chair and bureau.
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