Summary

The present report is submitted pursuant to General Assembly resolution 66/213 and Economic and Social Council resolution 2011/9, in which the Secretary-General was requested to submit a progress report on the implementation of the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2011-2020 (Istanbul Programme of Action). It includes a section on graduation and smooth transition as requested by the Assembly in its resolution 65/171.

1 . This first report assesses initial progress in the implementation of the Istanbul Programme of Action and challenges ahead. It analyses progress achieved in the past decade in the eight priority areas for action, thus providing a benchmark against which future progress will be measured. It also covers activities by all relevant stakeholders/vehicles including least developed countries and their development partners, South-South cooperation, parliaments, civil society, the private sector and the United Nations system. A section on graduation and smooth transition summarizes recent developments in this area. The report concludes with policy recommendations.