LDC Portal - International Support Measures for Least Developed Countries - Trade

Tariff shocks and graduation from the least developed country category - World Economic Situation and Prospects Monthly Briefing No. 191, July 2025

MTAVARES1 — Mon, 07 Jul 2025 13:00:00 +0000

Document Type:

Link to an External Document

Author:

Shantanu Mukherjee, Matthias Bruckner, Rashmi Banga

Document Summary:

This World Economic Situation and Prospects Monthly Briefing reviews the possible impacts of the current tariff shock on LDCs, with a focus on their graduation. It first examines the role of trade in LDC graduation, followed by the importance of the United States as destination for LDC exports. It then reviews the potential impacts of the announced tariffs on LDC exports, as well as broader impacts on these economies. The Monthly Briefing concludes by reviewing policy options for a way forward.

Tags:

UNDESA

Graduation

Trade

Tariffs

Committee for Development Policy (CDP)

Publication Date:

Monday, 07 July 2025

UNDESA

Document Topic/Theme:

Trade

LDC graduation and smooth transition

Document Type:

Articles, policy briefs, working papers, op-eds, project reports, blogs

Archived:

Symbol year:

2025

IISD Policy Brief: How Can World Trade Organization Rules and Flexibilities Promote Food Security in Least Developed Countries? (Facundo Calvo)

MTAVARES1 — Tue, 29 Oct 2024 13:00:00 +0000

Document Type:

Link to an External Document

Author:

Facundo Calvo

Document Summary:

29 October 2024. "Least developed countries (LDCs) need more investment in agriculture to increase their agricultural productivity and promote their food security. Existing World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and flexibilities on agricultural domestic support can help. New WTO rules and flexibilities can also help LDCs attract more private investment to increase their agricultural productivity and promote their food security."

Tags:

Trade

WTO

IISD

Food security

Agriculture

Publication Date:

Tuesday, 29 October 2024

IISD

Document Topic/Theme:

Trade

Document Type:

Articles, policy briefs, working papers, op-eds, project reports, blogs

Archived:

Symbol year:

2024

Non-Tariff Measures in the context of LDC graduation: Cambodia, Lao PDR and Timor-Leste. CSS Working Paper No. 24-5. Bangkok: ESCAP. (Kharel, Paras, Kshitiz Dahal, and Nyingtob Pema Norbu)

MTAVARES1 — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 13:00:00 +0000

Document Type:

Link to an External Document

Author:

Paras Kharel, Kshitiz Dahal, and Nyingtob Pema Norbu

Document Summary:

"The paper explores the impact of non-tariff measures (NTMs) on Cambodia, Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), and Timor-Leste as they prepare for graduation from the Least Developed Country (LDC) status. NTMs, which include sanitary measures, technical barriers, and regulatory requirements, pose significant challenges for LDCs. These countries face increased difficulties complying with complex NTMs, especially given their limited capacity. While tariffs have decreased globally, NTMs have become a more significant barrier, particularly for agricultural exports. Graduation from LDC status will exacerbate these challenges as countries lose access to special trade preferences, including relaxed rules of origin and other LDC-specific support mechanisms. The paper assesses the specific impacts on each country, highlighting Cambodia's challenges in complying with stricter rules of origin, Lao PDR's issues with intellectual property and NTMs, and Timor-Leste's reliance on oil exports and WTO accession. Finally, it offers recommendations for mitigating the negative impacts." of NTM compliance, focusing on capacity building and institutional strengthening to support sustainable trade development post-graduation

Tags:

ESCAP

UNESCAP

Lao PDR

Timor-Leste

Cambodia

Graduation

Trade

Non-tariff barriers

Publication Date:

Wednesday, 27 November 2024

ESCAP

Document Topic/Theme:

LDC graduation and smooth transition

Trade

Document Type:

Articles, policy briefs, working papers, op-eds, project reports, blogs

Archived:

Symbol year:

2024

NTMs in Nepal: Existing and new issues in the wake of LDC graduation (CSS Working Paper No. 24-4. Bangkok: ESCAP) (Paras Kharel, Kshitiz Dahal, and Nyingtob Pema Norbu)

MTAVARES1 — Wed, 31 Jul 2024 13:00:00 +0000

Document Type:

Link to an External Document

Author:

Paras Kharel, Kshitiz Dahal, and Nyingtob Pema Norbu

Document Summary:

"This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the challenges posed by non-tariff measures (NTMs) on Nepal's trade, particularly in light of its upcoming graduation from the least developed country (LDC) status in 2026. NTMs, which include policy measures other than tariffs, can significantly impact international trade by altering prices and quantities traded. While NTMs often serve legitimate purposes such as public health and safety, they can also act as trade barriers, creating procedural obstacles for exporters. The study highlights the dual impact of NTMs on Nepal’s trade, focusing on sectors like agriculture and pharmaceuticals where compliance costs are high. The paper discusses the potential loss of preferential trade treatments and more lenient rules of origin (RoO) post-graduation, which will necessitate significant adjustments in Nepal’s export strategies. It also examines the impact on subsidy regimes and the readiness of Nepal’s regulatory framework to handle these changes. The paper concludes with recommendations for capacity building and proactive international engagement to mitigate the adverse effects of stricter NTMs and ensure continued trade performance."

Tags:

UNESCAP

ESCAP

Nepal

Publication Date:

Wednesday, 31 July 2024

UNESCAP

Document Topic/Theme:

LDC graduation and smooth transition

Trade

Document Type:

Articles, policy briefs, working papers, op-eds, project reports, blogs

Archived:

Symbol year:

2024

World Trade Organization Agriculture Negotiations at MC13: What does the lack of outcomes mean for least developed countries and other vulnerable economies?

MTAVARES1 — Thu, 23 May 2024 13:00:00 +0000

Document Type:

Link to an External Document

Author:

Facundo Calvo

Document Summary:

IISD expert Facundo Calvo analyzes what came out of the WTO's agriculture negotiations at the 13th Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi and its implications for least developed countries and other vulnerable economies.

Tags:

Agriculture

WTO

Public stockholding

MC13

Trade

Publication Date:

Thursday, 23 May 2024

IISD

Document Topic/Theme:

Trade

Document Type:

Articles, policy briefs, working papers, op-eds, project reports, blogs

Archived:

Symbol year:

2024

What MC13 Achieved for Least Developed Countries (Emily Pender for tralac)

MTAVARES1 — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 13:00:00 +0000

Document Type:

Link to an External Document

Author:

Emily Pender

Document Summary:

"MC13 did not deliver much in the way of these matters – no agreement was reached on agriculture, fisheries phase two negotiations, or dispute settlement (where they agreed to continue work on negotiations rather than produce a draft agreement). That said, some progress has been made on the LDC graduation transition process (though modest), and special and differential treatment for LDCs."

Tags:

tralac

Trade

WTO

LDC Group - WTO

MC13

Publication Date:

Monday, 11 March 2024

tralac

Document Topic/Theme:

Trade

Document Type:

Articles, policy briefs, working papers, op-eds, project reports, blogs

Archived:

Symbol year:

2024

Reversing the decline in LDCs' services exports post-pandemic (Salamat Ali and Brendan Vickers for EIF)

MTAVARES1 — Thu, 22 Feb 2024 14:00:00 +0000

Document Type:

Link to an External Document

Author:

Salamat Ali, Brendan Vickers

Document Summary:

"Although the services sector has emerged as a new engine of economic growth, the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have severely affected services exports from the least developed countries (LDCs), with an approximate loss of almost USD 29 billion in foregone exports over the past three years. While global services exports have rebounded from the shock of the COVID-19 pandemic, the recovery in the LDCs is lagging, potentially with long-term consequences for achieving the ambitions of the Doha Programme of Action for the LDCs and several Sustainable Development Goals. Urgent actions by the LDCs and their trading and development partners to improve utilization of the WTO Services Waiver, incentivize foreign direct investment (FDI) and technology transfer, promote regional trade initiatives, leverage Aid for Trade, and address the digital divide can help reverse this trend, enabling the LDCs to benefit from a services-led transformation."

Tags:

EIF

The Commonwealth

Commonwealth

Commonwealth Secretariat

Enhanced Integrated Framework - EIF

Trade

Services trade

COVID-19

Publication Date:

Thursday, 22 February 2024

Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF)

Document Topic/Theme:

Trade

Document Type:

Articles, policy briefs, working papers, op-eds, project reports, blogs

Archived:

Symbol year:

2024

Development Issues for the Thirteenth Ministerial Conference—Deal Breaker or Game Changer? (Rashid S. Kaukab for IISD)

MTAVARES1 — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 14:00:00 +0000

Document Type:

Link to an External Document

Author:

Rashid S. Kaukab

Document Summary:

As developing countries and LDCs comprise 75% of the WTO, negotiations regarding development issues remain prevalent. However, certain conversations have been historically difficult and protracted. Rashid S. Kaukab showcases the importance of reaching outcomes relevant to special differential treatment for developing economies and the treatment of LDCs post-graduation from their category.

Tags:

WTO

IISD

MC13

Trade

International support measures for LDCs

Publication Date:

Thursday, 11 January 2024

IISD

Document Topic/Theme:

Trade

Document Type:

Articles, policy briefs, working papers, op-eds, project reports, blogs

Archived:

Symbol year:

2024

LDCs and the multilateral trading system: looking forward - A collection of essays, Volume 2 (WTO, EIF)

MTAVARES1 — Fri, 03 Nov 2023 13:00:00 +0000

Document Type:

Link to an External Document

Author:

Simon J. Evenett, Joseph W. Glauber, Pierre Sauve, Anirudh Shingal

Document Summary:

The Doha Programme of Action for LDCs for the decade 2022-2031 recognizes the role of trade for realizing the socio-economic development ambitions of least developed countries (LDCs). This second volume of essays on LDCs and the multilateral trading system covers topics on agriculture and food security, trade in services and trade measures affecting LDCs’ trade.

Tags:

Food security

GSP

Services trade

Publication Date:

Friday, 03 November 2023

WTO/EIF

Document Topic/Theme:

Trade

Document Type:

UN and WTO reports and publications

Archived:

Symbol year:

2023

Market access for products and services of export interest to least developed countries, 2023 (Note by the Secretariat, WTO)

MTAVARES1 — Mon, 30 Oct 2023 13:00:00 +0000

Document Type:

Link to an External Document

Author:

WTO Secretariat

Document Summary:

This Note, prepared by the Secretariat on an annual basis, provides an update on the trends in the least developed countries' (LDCs) trade and market access conditions.

Tags:

Trade

DFQF (duty-free quota free)

WTO

Market access

Publication Date:

Monday, 30 October 2023

WTO Secretariat

Document Topic/Theme:

Trade

Document Type:

UN and WTO reports and publications

Archived:

Symbol year:

2023