Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has said countries participating in the Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC-IV) have agreed on the İstanbul Action Plan despite difficult debates over the aid regime.
Davutoğlu told reporters on Thursday that the discussions were difficult because poor countries and Turkey asked for more direct aid but rich countries insisted on the current regime.
He said that while Turkey was close to all sides during the discussions, it tried to bring the least developed countries’ interests and expectations to the forefront.
Davutoğlu said the priorities of the LDCs, the G-77 and developed countries were different and that Turkey had met with all sides and engaged in intense diplomatic efforts to close the gap between them.
The foreign minister said the rift in opinions was closed by yesterday and that the İstanbul Action Plan was adopted. The details of the plan will be announced on Friday.
Davutoğlu said Turkey plans to graduate as many countries as possible via the İstanbul Action Plan and envisages nearly $3 billion in contributions through trade and investment in agriculture, health and education.
Davutoğlu said Turkey also plans to provide scholarships to 1,000 students from these countries and that he wants people those nations to see Turkey’s friendship and brotherhood.
via Davutoğlu says countries agree on İstanbul Action Plan despite hard bargains.