The Least Developed Countries (LDCs) are the poorest and the most disadvantaged members of the international community that face a broad range of socio-economic, geographical, political and environmental challenges. The United Nations defines LDCs based on three criteria: low gross national income, weak human development indices (ex. nutrition, health, education and adult literacy), and high level of economic vulnerability. Currently forty-eight countries, 33 in Africa, 14 in Asia and the Pacific and 1 in Latin America, are designated as LDCs by the United Nations. With only three countries having graduated from LDC status, the number of LDC countries has leaped from 24 in 1971 when the category was first officially established by the UN General Assembly to 48 in 2012.
Amid the growing interdependency in the global economic system the international effort to reverse the trend of socio-economic marginalization of LDCs officially began at the first UN Conference on Least Developed Countries held in Paris in 1981. In the realm of development, the adoption of Millennium Development Goals in 2000 has led to major donors targeting LDCs as their key aid recipient group. Nevertheless, despite global efforts to support LDCs, there has been growing concern over the deepening vulnerability of LDCs as they were stricken by the impact of the global economic recession, food crisis and climate change in the last several years.
In this context, this paper attempts to identify main development challenges facing LDCs and provide policy recommendations for South Korea as an emerging donor; to enhance its cooperation with LDCs in terms of aid, trade, debt relief and climate change. The paper begins by reviewing the UN criteria for LDC, defining socio-economic and geographical features of LDCs and also post-recession economic trends. The main challenges and priorities of the LDC group were assessed, with specific focus on limited production capacity and market access, lack of development resources, debt burden, and climate change vulnerability followed by the MDG progress and post-MDG needs. Then it moves on to examine the UN-led international efforts to support LDCs outlined in the Istanbul Program of Action adopted in the fourth UN Conference on the LDCs and suggests actions that should be taken by LDC governments and donors. The DAC donors’ aid to LDCs, their allocation patterns and quality of aid were analyzed along with bilateral and multilateral initiatives targeting LDCs such as the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). The trends and examples of South-South Cooperation and triangular cooperation with LDCs were also presented. Moving beyond aid, the following chapter develops its analysis further on international and Korean support in related areas such as trade facilitation through the Special and Differential Treatments, debt relief and climate change. 
The paper concludes by suggesting policy measures for the Korean government to improve its support to LDCs through ODA, trade facilitation, debt relief and climate change assistance. Firstly Korea needs to improve the quality of its aid to LDCs by expanding its aid untying ratio to LDCs and HIPCs. It is advised that Korea needs to strength its capacity to actively participate in local and international tender, to expand the use of local procurement systems and to promote co-financing with Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs). Secondly, it is recommended that Korea should extend the level of non-tariff Special and Differential Treatments (SDTs) to LDCs. The importance of the technical and financial cooperation to help LDCs combat effects of climate change is also highlighted. As for aid, Korea needs to reduce the number of priority countries, enhance the selection criteria and use the existing regional cooperation platforms more actively. Finally, in order to improve development effectiveness and policy coherence for development, there should be further efforts to strengthen the whole-of-government approach through policy-level partnership among related ministries in charge of aid, trade, debt and climate change.

서언 

국문요약 

제1장 머리말 
1. 연구목적 
2. 연구방법 및 구성 

제2장 최빈개도국의 경제 현황과 개발과제 
1. 최빈개도국 경제의 구조적 특징 
   가. 최빈개도국 지위와 주요 기준 
   나. 지리적 분포와 사회경제적 취약성 
   다. 글로벌 경제위기 이후 경제 현황 
2. 최빈개도국의 개발과제와 주요 현안 
   가. 생산 및 무역구조의 취약성 
   나. 개발재원 부족 및 부채탕감 
   다. 기후변화 영향 및 취약성 
3. 새천년개발목표와 최빈국의 이행성과 
   가. 새천년개발목표의 내용과 의의 
   나. 최빈개도국의 새천년개발목표 달성 현황 
   다. Post MDG의 정책방향과 과제 

제3장 국제사회의 최빈개도국 지원 현황과 성과 
1. 유엔 최빈개도국 회의 
   가. 브뤼셀 행동계획(BPoA) 
   나. 이스탄불 행동계획(IPoA) 
   다. IPoA 중점분야별 추진과제 
2. 국제사회의 ODA 지원 현황 
   가. 선진공여국의 최빈개도국 원조규모 
   나. 최빈개도국 원조배분 및 수원실적 
3. 국제사회의 최빈개도국 지원 이니셔티브 
   가. 양자차원 이니셔티브 
   나. 다자차원 이니셔티브 
4. 최빈개도국에 대한 남남협력 추진 현황 
   가. 신흥개도국의 원조 현황 
   나. 최빈개도국에 대한 남남협력 사례 

제4장 최빈개도국 지원정책과 한국의 추진 현황 
1. 최빈국 특혜관세조치 
   가. 국제사회의 지원 현황 
   나. 우리나라의 특혜관세제도 현황 
2. 고채무빈곤국 부채탕감 
   가. 국제사회의 지원 현황 
   나. 우리나라의 부채탕감 지원 현황 
3. 기후변화 적응 지원 
   가. 국제사회의 지원 현황 
   나. 우리나라 기후변화 적응 지원 현황 

제5장 한국의 최빈개도국 ODA 지원방향 
1. 최빈개도국 ODA 지원 현황과 문제점 
2. 최빈개도국 ODA 지원조건 개선 
   가. 최빈개도국 ODA의 재무적 조건 
   나. 최빈개도국 ODA의 구속성 
3. 최빈개도국의 개발효과성 강화 
   가. 최빈개도국 특혜관세조치 확대 
   나. 고채무빈곤국 부채탕감 지원 
   다. 기후변화 적응사업 확대 
4. 최빈개도국과의 개발파트너십 증진 
   가. 중점협력대상국 선정 
   나. 지역별 양자협의체 

제6장 결론 및 시사점 

참고문헌 

부    록 

Executive Summary