A Ministerial Meeting of Landlocked Developing Countries to Be Held (LLDCs) in New York
The practical implementation of the Avaza Action Program for 2024–2034, financing mechanisms for large-scale infrastructure projects, and ways to accelerate transit and transport integration will be key topics at the Annual Meeting of Foreign Ministers of Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs), which will be held on September 24, 2026, at UN Headquarters during the 81st session of the General Assembly.
The forum aims to provide strategic impetus to overcoming geographic and economic barriers for 32 countries, which account for 7% of the world's population but only 1.1% of global GDP. Heads of foreign affairs agencies, transit countries, and international financial institutions will focus on initiatives to ensure freedom of transit, reduce logistics costs, establish a specialized mechanism for investing in transport and energy arteries, and enhance the climate resilience of developing economies.
An institutional step towards the upcoming forum was the meeting of the Permanent Representatives of the LLDCs Group of Member States held in New York on September 3, where Turkmenistan was unanimously elected as the Group's Chair for 2027–2028. The official approval of the updated Governing Bureau, which also includes Azerbaijan, Laos, Burundi, Chad, Rwanda, and Paraguay, will be recorded in the Final Declaration of the September Ministerial Meeting.
The mandate of the Chairmanship, which takes effect on January 1, 2027, will enable Turkmenistan to act as the main coordinator of the interests of landlocked developing countries on the global stage, directing joint efforts towards the implementation of the Avaza Program, the development of multimodal corridors, and the strengthening of digital and energy connectivity in regional markets.
