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The United Nations General Assembly has adopted a resolution to include Bangladesh, Nepal and Laos in the list of developing countries from the category of the least developed countries.
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Criteria to qualify in the developing country category:
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Countries must meet at least two of the below criteria in order to qualify for inclusion in the developing countries’ category:
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Per capita Gross National Income of $1,018 and above.
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A high score of 60 on the Human Assets Index, which includes a health index and education index.
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A low score of 36 on the Economic & Environmental Vulnerability Index.
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Negative Implications:
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Disruption in a country’s development: As an LDC, a country gets trade related concessions including market access, and development assistance, technical assistance and special pathways to participate in international processes.
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But when such benefits are withdrawn suddenly on account of a country’s development from LDC to Developing country status, it could impact its growth.
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Positive implications:
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The inclusion of Nepal and Bangladesh as developing countries, plus the scheduled graduation of Bhutan in 2023, are all positive developments for the South Asian region.
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The improvement in the economic and social prospects of the people of a country can benefit other nations, particularly those in its neighbourhood.
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Transition Period:
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Graduating countries such as Nepal and Bangladesh are given a transition period during which most of the benefits available to LDCs remain available to graduating countries.
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Usually, the transition period is three years, but this time, in view of the economic, social and other disruptions caused by Covid-9, the UN General Assembly has taken the right step by giving five years.
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