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A high-level meeting to review the Vienna Programme of Action (VPoA) for Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) in Latin America commences today in Asunción, Paraguay. The two-day meeting aims to assess the progress made by landlocked developing countries in the region over the past decade and propose new partnerships and solutions, with a focus on diversification and productive transformation.

Paraguay, along with Bolivia, is one of Latin America's two landlocked developing countries. Both countries’ lack of direct territorial access to the sea increases their transportation costs, limits their reach into global markets and hinders their full participation in international trade, posing significant economic challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing geopolitical and global macroeconomic contractions have further amplified the structural obstacles they face.

Government ministers and senior government officials from Bolivia and Paraguay, as well as transit countries in the region, development and United Nations system partners, will convene to deliberate on the unique challenges faced by the two LLDCs, and on innovative solutions to unlock the potential of the two countries and accelerate their path to sustainable development.

“Our goal is to discuss innovative proposals and solutions to advance towards a structural economic transformation of Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) and achieve sustainable development and prosperity,” said Julio César Arriola Ramírez, Paraguay’s  Minister of Foreign Affairs. “This meeting will be pivotal in defining a regional stance for the Third UN Conference on LLDCs”, he added.

“Latin America's landlocked countries pay the price of high transport and trade costs, logistical hurdles and country-specific structural challenges which limit their access to investments, financing, technology, and services required for enhancing productive capacity in crucial sectors," stated Rabab Fatima, United Nations High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries, and Small Island Developing States. “However, the story of LLDCs is not simply one of challenges, it is also one of promising solutions, provided they receive the necessary support. With shared commitment and a collaborative spirit, we can overcome the obstacles faced by LLDCs and usher in an era of prosperity and sustainable development", she added.

The meeting, which will be held under the theme “Towards diversification and productive transformation for Latin American Landlocked Developing Countries with enhanced regional and global integration," marks the second of three regional review meetings on the path to the Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries, scheduled for Kigali, Rwanda, in 2024. The first regional meeting for African LLDCs was held in Gaborone, Botswana in May, and a third meeting for Asia and Europe is planned in Bangkok, Thailand in August.

The outcome of the high-level meeting in Asunción will culminate in an essential document that will directly contribute to preparations for the Third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries.

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