UNDERSTANDING THE WTO:
THE ORGANIZATION Least-developed countries
The WTO recognizes as least-developed countries (LDCs)
those countries which have been designated as such by the United
Nations. There are currently 48 least-developed countries on the UN list, 34 of which to date have become WTO members.
There are no WTO definitions of “developed” or
“developing” countries. Developing countries in the WTO are designated on the basis of self-selection although this is not necessarily automatically accepted in all WTO bodies.
