His Excellency the State President of the Republic of Malawi Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera has described the 5th Least Development Countries (LDCs) Summit as extremely unique, stressing that the 46-member grouping exists for the sole purpose of “ending own existence.”
Speaking in his capacity as LDCs’ Chairperson at the opening of the summit at the Doha Convention Centre in Qatar, the Malawi leader said the suffering that is shared by the poor countries under the LDCs banner requires them to embrace the Doha Programme of Action (2022-2031) which he described as an excellent and pragmatic blueprint designed to help LDCs escape such a category of poor countries.
Meanwhile, President Chakwera has asked developed countries to ensure fulfilling or delivering their promises to LDCs, stating that their assistance should not be deemed or rendered as a favour but rather a historical and a moral responsibility.
In his remarks during the opening ceremony, Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, told the wealthy nations to perceive the expected graduation of LDCs into middle-income countries as “a reward and not punishment.”
In his strong-worded statement, Guterres also vowed that, going forward, the UN will not allow LDCs’ to fall down the development ladder, saying their day-to-day efforts are a product of hard work by those poor countries.
Among other reasons, the UN exists to develop friendly relations between nations, based on respect for the principle of equal rights and the self-determination of people, as well as to take other appropriate measures to strengthen the principle of universal peace.
