Key Impact Points:
- Trade costs up to 74% higher and export times double for 32 LLDCs compared to coastal nations.
- Awaza Programme of Action (2024–2034) sets priorities: structural transformation, trade facilitation, regional integration, infrastructure, and resilience.
- Global partnerships mobilized to boost market access, investment, and sustainable growth for LLDCs.
Landlocked but Not Left Behind
Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) – home to over 600 million people – face some of the steepest trade and development challenges worldwide. With no sea access, they depend on transit nations, driving up trade costs by as much as 74% and doubling export times compared to coastal economies.
These 32 nations, which make up 7% of the global population, account for just 1.2% of global merchandise trade and less than 1% of exports. Nearly one-third are at high risk of, or already in, debt distress.
The Third UN Conference on LLDCs (LLDC3), held 5–8 August in Awaza, Turkmenistan, brings world leaders, private sector executives, civil society, and youth together to forge new solutions.
“Let us harness our shared commitment to drive transformative change in the lives of the 570 million people living in the 32 LLDCs to ensure no one is left behind,” said H.E. Ms. Rabab Fatima, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, UN-OHRLLS
A Once‑in‑a‑Decade Opportunity
LLDC3 is anchored in the Awaza Programme of Action (APOA) – adopted by consensus by the UN General Assembly in 2024 – as a blueprint for 2024–2034. It calls for:
- Regional Agriculture Research Hubs
- Infrastructure Investment Finance Facility
- High‑Level Panel on Freedom of Transit
- WTO Work Programme for LLDCs
- UNFCCC Negotiating Body for LLDC climate action
“Turkmenistan will continue the policy of neutrality based on good neighborliness, mutual respect, equality and mutually beneficial cooperation with all the countries of the world,” said President Serdar Berdimuhamedov.
Mobilizing Partnerships for Impact
The conference features six plenary meetings and five high‑level thematic roundtables, alongside targeted forums for:
- Private Sector – advancing trade and investment
- Parliamentarians – shaping policy implementation
- Civil Society – amplifying grassroots voices
- Youth – driving innovation and inclusion
- South‑South Cooperation – sharing development strategies
Special events include a Women Leaders’ Forum and the launch of the LLDC Global Business Network – the first‑ever platform to connect businesses across LLDCs, transit countries, and partners.s.
Why It Matters Now
For millions of children without internet access, farmers unable to get crops to market, and entrepreneurs blocked by border delays and lack of finance, LLDC3 is about more than trade. It’s about rewriting the development trajectory of some of the world’s most overlooked nations.
“LLDC3 offers a once‑in‑a‑decade opportunity to reshape the development path of LLDCs by mobilizing international support and partnerships, and by placing their needs firmly on the global development agenda,” H.E. Ms. Rabab Fatima stressed.
The UN is calling for fairer global value chains, more local manufacturing investment, and inclusive infrastructure projects to ensure that geography no longer determines destiny.
More information & resources:
Countdown to LLDC3
5–8 August 2025 • Awaza, Turkmenistan
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