DHAKA, Bangladesh (CU)_ Bangladesh has been recommended by the United Nations Committee for Development Policy for its graduation from Least Developed Country (LDC) status. At a press conference, Taffere Tesfachew, head of the CDP subgroup on LDCs, announced the recommendation decision following the UN CDP’s second triennial review of the LDC category. On February 22, the 5-day evaluation meeting started. It is for the second time that Bangladesh has fulfilled all three graduation requirements, which include per capita income, human capital, and economic and environmental susceptibility.
Myanmar and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic all passed the graduation standards for the second year in a row. In 2018, Nepal also fulfilled the requirements. The UN CDP, on the other hand, postponed a decision on Myanmar and Timor-Leste until the triennial review in 2024. Due to issues about the negative effects of the military’s declaration of a state of emergency on Myanmar’s growth trajectory and graduation training, the UN panel postponed recommending Myanmar for graduation.
Following the UN committee’s recommendation that Bangladesh be listed as a developing country, the proposal will be submitted to the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for approval in June. The resolution is expected to be approved by the UN General Assembly in September of this year. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic impacts on economy, the CDP proposed that Bangladesh and two other countries be given five years instead of three years to graduate to the status of developing nation.
In terms of gross national income (GNI), Bangladesh was well ahead of the pack in 2020, with a per capita income of nearly $1,827 compared to the $1,230 threshold. The country’s score in the Human Assets Index (HAI) criterion is 75.3 points, well above the necessary 66. A country’s score on the Economic Vulnerability Index (EVI) must be less than 32. Bangladesh has a ranking of 27.3.
