New York, 17 July 2026: Minister of Commerce Khandakar Abdul Muktadir held separate bilateral meetings with the President and Vice-President of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) to discuss Bangladesh’s request for a three-year extension of the preparatory period for graduation from the Least Developed Country (LDC) category and to advance international support for the country’s smooth, sustainable, and irreversible graduation.
During the meetings at the United Nations Headquarters with ECOSOC President and Permanent Representative of Nepal Ambassador Lok Bahadur Thapa and ECOSOC Vice-President and Permanent Representative of Algeria Ambassador Amar Bendjama, the Commerce Minister presented the rationale behind Bangladesh’s request to extend the preparatory period until November 2029. He explained that the country’s ongoing economic and political transition, global economic uncertainties, energy crises, climate change, and other external shocks had limited Bangladesh’s ability to fully utilize the existing preparatory period.
Reaffirming the Government’s firm commitment to LDC graduation, the Minister said the proposed extension was intended not to delay graduation but to consolidate structural reforms, strengthen governance, restore macroeconomic stability, reinforce the financial sector, improve the investment climate, expand infrastructure, and implement a robust and sustainable Smooth Transition Strategy.
The Bangladesh delegation included Adviser to the Prime Minister for Finance and Planning Dr. Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir; State Minister for Planning Zonayed Saki; Secretary of the Economic Relations Division (ERD) Md. Shahriar Kader Siddiky; Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations Ambassador Salahuddin Noman Chowdhury; President of the Leathergoods and Footwear Manufacturers & Exporters Association of Bangladesh Syed Nasim Manzur; and President of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Mahmud Hasan Khan.
The ECOSOC President and Vice-President acknowledged the global challenges facing developing countries in their graduation from the LDC category and expressed their commitment to working closely with Bangladesh to ensure its smooth, sustainable, and irreversible graduation.
