The international community must aid the world's landlocked developing countries (LLDCs), U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Monday, noting that only through comprehensive improvements in trade would such countries be best prepared to address the post-2015 agenda. Speaking at the annual U.N. conference on LLDCs in Vienna, Ban said the world's plans to address global challenges "must take account of conditions in LLDCs." "We need greater regional integration. This will strengthen trade ties. It will increase economic groupings," the U.N. chief said. "Regional integration can transform countries from being landlocked to ‘landlinked." There are 32 countries classified as landlocked and developing, 16 of which are in Africa, 10 in Asia, 4 in Europe, and 2 in Latin America. Lack of territorial access to the sea, remoteness and isolation from world markets, and high transit costs continue to impose serious constraints on their overall socio-economic development.
