UN Gears Up for LLDC3 to Empower Landlocked Nations

Landlocked developing nationa need to be empowered,

Landlocked developing countries face a unique set of challenges. Without coastal ports, they rely on transit nations, resulting in higher trade costs and delays.

To explore solutions to these complex hurdles, the Third UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs), or LLDC3, will take place in Awaza, Turkmenistan, from 5–8 August 2025.

May Yaacoub, LLDC3 spokesperson and Head of Advocacy and Outreach at the United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (UNOHRLLS), told IPS that the conference is “an opportunity to unlock the full potential of landlocked countries and address the challenges faced by some of the world’s most marginalized countries.”

“In every LLDC, the map itself shapes the economy. Without a coastline, even the simplest export—whether cotton lint, copper cathode, or cloud-based software—must first cross at least one foreign border and often an entire transit corridor before reaching a port,” said Tomás Manuel González Álvarez, Senior Programme Management Officer and LLDC Team Lead at UNOHRLLS.

“The UN estimates that this physical detour means average transport costs in LLDCs are about 1.4 times higher than in comparable coastal economies. Those added costs depress profit margins, narrow the range of viable products, and deter investors who value just-in-time delivery.”

Against this backdrop—and while lacking direct sea access exacerbates challenges in trade, connectivity, and development—Yaacoub says LLDCs host vibrant communities with untapped potential and “have the ideas and know what they need to prosper. By supporting them at LLDC3 with partnerships, innovations, and cooperation, we can help build a more equitable and prosperous future for all.”

“This conference comes on the heels of the expiration of the Vienna Programme of Action, adopted in Vienna, Austria, in November 2014 during LLDC2. LLDC3 will continue the work of LLDC2 and serve as a platform to explore innovative solutions, build meaningful and strategic partnerships, and increase investment in LLDCs,” she added.

The theme of the conference is ‘Driving Progress through Partnerships,’ which she says underscores a shift from donor-recipient dynamics to mutual accountability and co-investment. This includes a stronger role for transit countries, enhanced multilateral cooperation, and alignment with the SDGs, the Paris Agreement, and the Pact for the Future.

Álvarez emphasises that landlockedness is experienced very differently across regions, and the conference agenda reflects an understanding of these complexities. In Africa, “for countries such as Niger or Zambia, the critical pain point is the sheer length and fragility of overland routes—1,800 km from Niamey to Cotonou; 1,900 km from Lusaka to Durban.”

“Road and rail bottlenecks meet frequent customs stops and, in parts of the Sahel, insecurity. The result is chronic delays and freight rates that can exceed the FOB (free on board) value of low-margin agricultural commodities.”

He notes that in Asia, countries like Kazakhstan or Uzbekistan possess better road and rail grids. At the same time, these economies are accelerating an energy transition—from hydrocarbons to renewables and green hydrogen—necessitating corridors capable of carrying high-voltage electricity and fibre along with bulk ore.

“Bolivia and Paraguay rely on the 3,300 km Paraguay–Paraná waterway for nearly four-fifths of their trade. Low river levels during recent droughts have stranded barges and cost Paraguay an estimated USD 300 million in 2024 alone. Moreover, new tolls levied by Argentina highlight the vulnerability that comes with dependence on a single transit state,” he adds.

Within this context, Yaacoub says LLDC3 represents a major shift in both scope and ambition compared to its predecessors—LLDC1 in Almaty in 2003, which was a ministerial meeting, and LLDC2 in Vienna in 2014. LLDC1 focused primarily on transit policy, infrastructure development, international trade, and technical and financial assistance.

LLDC2 expanded the agenda to include structural economic transformation, regional integration, and means of implementation. Notably, Yaacoub says, LLDC3 “introduces a more holistic and forward-looking agenda, emphasizing climate resilience and adaptation, digital transformation and technology access, sustainable industrialisation, reform of the global financial architecture, shock-resilience, and disaster risk reduction.”

She adds that the LLDC3 agenda reflects the unprecedented global complexities of the current era—climate change, pandemics, geopolitical tensions, and economic shocks. Key thematic areas include climate vulnerability and financing, with an emphasis on operationalising the Loss and Damage Fund, doubling adaptation finance, and ensuring access to concessional resources.

Álvarez says the conference is particularly focused on converting the narrative from “landlocked” to “land-linked,” and that unlocking the potential of these countries relies on a strategy built on mutually reinforcing pillars, including multibillion-dollar investments in regional corridors—such as the Central and Northern Corridors in East Africa, the Trans-Caspian route into Europe, and new dry ports along the Paraguay–Paraná system—which could reduce door-to-port time by 30% within a decade.

He adds that building climate resilience is critical, as LLDCs heavily rely on rain-fed agriculture for income, employment, and sustenance. Climate variability has already begun to disrupt agricultural cycles, reduce crop yields, and threaten food security. These effects ripple across rural economies, deepening poverty and forcing difficult choices for households.

Álvarez also stresses that the same remoteness that inflates freight costs hampers emergency relief during droughts, floods, or storms. Many LLDCs suffer disproportionately from climate-related disasters because they lack redundant road and telecom links. “As extreme weather intensifies, production shocks travel quickly through thinly diversified economies and can wipe out years of growth,” he says.

Overall, he warns, “these headwinds jeopardise progress on at least six Sustainable Development Goals—most visibly Goals 1 (No Poverty), 9 (Industry and Infrastructure), and 13 (Climate Action). Unless structural constraints are eased, many LLDCs risk missing the 2030 milestones by a full generation.”

Álvarez describes the developmental drag caused by geography as “not merely inconvenient; it is systemic.” High logistics costs shrink the set of competitive exports. “Many LLDCs remain reliant on two or three unprocessed commodities, leaving them vulnerable to price swings and limiting the spillovers that typically accompany industrial clustering.”

He also notes that limited fiscal space means governments struggle to finance education, health, and social protection at scale. LLDCs, as a group, record poverty rates 50–60% higher than the global average for developing countries and score lower on the World Bank’s Human Capital Index—0.36 versus 0.48 in 2024.

Yaacoub confirms that all these issues will be explored in depth through key thematic areas that also include private sector, civil society, and youth engagement to foster inclusive partnerships and promote South–South and Triangular Cooperation, with an emphasis on regional and interregional collaboration.

“This inclusive process ensures that the new Awaza Programme of Action is grounded in the lived realities of LLDCs and their partners,” she observes.

Yaacoub concludes that the most desirable outcome of LLDC3 would be the global endorsement and operationalisation of the Awaza Programme of Action—a transformative, actionable framework to empower LLDCs to overcome structural challenges and thrive in a rapidly changing world.

She stresses that LLDC3 will serve as “a high-level platform to present, promote, and mobilise support for the implementation of the Awaza PoA, adopted in December 2024.” A second major goal is the mobilisation of resources and investment commitments from development partners to support infrastructure, climate resilience, and digital transformation.

Ultimately, she is optimistic that the conference will lead to strengthened partnerships and expanded regional cooperation to renew and enhance transit agreements and integration initiatives, including expanded South–South and Triangular Cooperation frameworks aligned with the SDGs, the Paris Agreement, and the Pact for the Future.