LDC Identification Criteria & Indicators

1. Income Threshold
   1. average annual Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of 3 years
      1. The inclusion threshold → below US$1,018 
      2. The graduation threshold → above US$1,222
      3. The income-only graduation threshold → above US$2,444
2. Human assets index (HAI)
   1. Health index
      1. Under-five mortality rate
      2. Prevalence of stunting
      3. Maternal mortality ratio
   2. Education index
      1. Gross secondary school enrolment ratio
      2. Adult literacy rate
      3. Gender parity index for gross secondary school enrolment
   3. The inclusion threshold → below 60
   4. The graduation threshold → above 66
3. Economic and Environmental Vulnerability Index (EVI)
   1. Economic Vulnerability Index
      1. Share of agriculture, forestry, fisheries in GDP
      2. Remoteness and landlockedness
      3. Merchandise export concentration
      4. Instability of exports of goods and services
   2. Environmental Vulnerability Index
      1. Share of population in low elevated coastal zones
      2. Share of population living in drylands
      3. Instability of agricultural production
      4. Victims of disasters
   3. The inclusion threshold → above 36
   4. The graduation threshold → below 32

 Explanation:

• The Committee for Development Policy (CDP) is mandated by the General Assembly (GA) and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) to review the list of LDCs and makes recommendations for inclusion in and graduation from the category every three years.
• These recommendations are not exclusively based on the criteria scores, complementary country-specific information (DESA impact assessment, UNCTAD vulnerability profile) and the views of the government are also taken into account.
• The inclusion thresholds, as determined by the CDP, must be met for each of the three criteria (GNI per capita, HAI and EVI) in one triennial review. The population must be no larger than 75 million inhabitants.
• The graduation thresholds, as determined by the CDP, must be met for any two of the three criteria in two consecutive triennial reviews. Alternatively, the GNI per capita of the country is at least twice the graduation threshold in two consecutive triennial reviews (income-only criterion).

Note: Abstracted from the Identification Criteria at the latest UN website. (Last visited Apr.20, 2022)
https://www.un.org/development/desa/dpad/least-developed-country-category/ldc-criteria.html