More than three quarters of the 880 million people of the least developed countries still live in poverty. A new global agreement to help grapple with the needs of 48 least developed countries emerged from a major UN conference last month in Istanbul.

The Istanbul Programme of Action (IPOA), as the agreement was called, contains many policy prescriptions for both LDCs and development partners, while falling short of precise targets and time-bound commitments. However, the agreement breaks new ground in at least one important respect, by incorporating provisions about the role of parliament in development that would have been unthinkable only a few years ago. The IPU worked hard to make sure that the views of parliaments were reflected in the agreement through an extensive consultation process that began nearly two years ago.

The most important new provision (paragraph 36), which informs the entire document, states that “parliaments have an important role in debating development strategies as well as overseeing their implementation. The engagement of parliaments will ensure effectiveness, transparency and accountability in the design, implementation and review of the policies and programmes in the context of the Programme of Action.”

Other provisions, in the chapter on good governance, call for strengthening parliament as an institution and for parliaments to promote the engagement of all citizens in the development process.  In fact the IPOA pinpoints the need for better governance, both national and international, as an issue that underpins all other development efforts. Decoding the UN jargon, this means that without a healthy dose of democracy at every level of society, development stands little chance of becoming reality. This is the entry point for the IPU’s own involvement, as described in its Parliamentary Message to the UN conference.

The Programme lays considerable emphasis on developing productive capacities so that the LDCs can develop stronger and more viable economies across all sectors. The LDCs are expected to integrate the IPOA in their national development strategies while developed countries will have to build it into their development cooperation.

For its part, the IPU pledged to help parliaments mainstream the IPOA into their institutional machinery. A project proposal to this effect is being developed along with the United Nations Office of the High Representative for the LDCs (OHRLLS). The project was discussed with MPs during a Parliamentary Forum that was organized on the eve of the conference together with Turkey’s Grand National Assembly.

Among other things, the project envisions a better system of focal points to help parliaments assess their institutional needs with respect to the IPOA, share policy findings with colleagues, and generally provide a bridge to development expertise outside the parliament. The ultimate goal of the Istanbul Programme is to help at least half of the 48 LDCs to drop the “least developed” label by 2020. Regular progress reviews will be conducted to monitor the IPOA, with a mid-point global conference in 2015.