From 23 to 25 August 2022, Government officials and representatives from private sector, academia, research institute and civil society from Nepal, Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), and Bangladesh, and the UN development system, will gather in Bangkok, Thailand to attend a South-South Exchange on Preparing Smooth Transition Strategies: The Graduating Cohort of 2021.

The event is organised by the Offices of the UN Resident Coordinators, United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), the Committee for Development Policy (CDP), the United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, and Economic and Social Affairs Commission for Asia and the Pacific, delivered through iGRAD (Sustainable Graduation Support Facility) and funded by UNDESA’s Peace Development Fund project.

This initiative is part of the on-going support by the UN Development System for Nepal, Bangladesh and Lao PDR as the only three countries recommended by the CDP for graduation during the ongoing global pandemic to develop the national Smooth Transition Strategies (STS) for sustainable graduation.

The Nepal Delegation, led by Kewal Prasad Bhandari, Secretary of the National Planning Commission, Government of Nepal comprises LDC focal points across line ministries and representatives from the private sector, research institute and civil society organization. The delegation will be accompanied by the representatives from United Nations Country Team Nepal, led by Richard Howard, UN Resident Coordinator, a.i., in Nepal.

Over the course of three days with eight technical sessions, the delegations from Nepal, Bangladesh, and Lao PDR will have various opportunities to experience and exchange views on the common gaps and challenges of graduation where particular focus and actions would be required during the development process of the STS, identify pathways to address those challenges and consolidate joint efforts to advocate for effective international support for the successful implementation of the STS.