Minister Naseem delivers a statement at the Fourth United Nations Conference of the LDCs

Minister of Foreign Affairs Ahmed Naseem said based on the Maldivian experience of graduating from the LDC list, it was the economic growth, strength of democratic institutions, economic vulnerability and LDC ownership in the development of initiatives to resolve local challenges that shaped the choices to which an LDC may avail itself and the parameters in which it functions.

Speaking at the Fourth United Nations Conference of the Least Developed Countries being held in Istanbul, Turkey, Minister Naseem said that economic growth and human development were mutually reinforcing sources of economic progress but Maldives learned that they were not enough to produce sustainable development, and that the Maldives experience demonstrated that democracy and good governance were the pillars on which the successes of sustainable development rested.

“Although economic growth is still a critical prerequisite for LDC progress, it must still be checked by strong democratic institutions and rule of law that ensures access, non-discrimination, and equity-based growth” said Minister Naseem.

He further reiterated that sustainable development cannot be achieved by government alone, and that Governments must develop symbiotic relationships with the private sector to tap into its enterprise and vitality.

In this regards he said that Maldives was increasingly engaging in commercial diplomacy, and that the Government believed that public-private partnerships were necessary to meet the exorbitant costs of building and maintaining infrastructure vital to both our public and private needs.

Speaking on the Maldives’ experience, Minister Naseem stressed the challenges the country was still facing as a low lying island nation with a small population and called on effective review to consider the economic vulnerabilities of small island states considered fro graduation.

“Despite the fact that these vulnerabilities are shared by the entire island LDCs, the countries that are either graduating or that have been considered for graduation are island states. These countries are the smallest of the LDCs in terms of population, and as stated in the BPoA review, small populations are in fact considered as a major indicator of economic vulnerability. Thus, it is integral that the economic vulnerabilities of small islands states are seriously considered during graduation reviews in addition to GNI and human resources development. We believe that if economic vulnerability was really taken seriously, Cape Verde, the Maldives, and now Samoa would now be discussing ways to mute their permanent sources of underdevelopment with the international community, rather than being used to show that something was indeed effective in the BPoA. It is also crucial that these permanent vulnerabilities continue to be addressed after graduation in order to ensure that island LDC progress is not reversed.”

The Minister concluded the statement by congratulating the international community for its work to move towards this goal, and reiterated Maldives’ commitment to constructive, shared pursuit of the goal