Common Fund for Commodities to Spotlight Financing and Trade Solutions at Landmark LLDC3 Conference in Turkmenistan
Amsterdam, Netherlands – The Common Fund for Commodities (CFC) is honored to participate in the upcoming Third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDC3), taking place 5–8 August 2025 in Awaza, Turkmenistan. This pivotal global event will convene Heads of State, UN agencies, the private sector, and civil society to forge a renewed international agenda for the 32 landlocked developing countries (LLDCs).
Landlocked Developing Countries face persistent development barriers due to their geographical isolation. With no access to seaports, LLDCs often suffer from disproportionately high transport and trade costs, limited diversification, and increased vulnerability to climate change and external shocks. LLDC3 aims to adopt a bold new Programme of Action, anchored in resilience, inclusion, and sustainability.
As a development finance institution committed to inclusive growth, the CFC will host two high-impact side events focused on unlocking investment, supporting productive capacity, and empowering agri-SMEs in LLDCs.
Side Event 1: Productive Capacities & the EU Deforestation Regulation
📅 5 August 2025 | 🕕 18:15–19:45 | Room 3-07.03
Organizers: CFC, UNCTAD, UNDESA
This session will explore the implications of the EU's new Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) for LLDCs—highlighting how environmental compliance risks becoming a barrier to market access. Participants will discuss strategies to mitigate the regulation’s potential trade impacts and emphasize the importance of building productive capacities to diversify exports and enable structural transformation. CFC and UNCTAD will present early findings from a joint study on EUDR’s effects on African LLDCs.
Side Event 2: Agricultural Commodity Transformation (ACT) Fund
📅 6 August 2025 | 🕐 13:15–14:45 | Room 3-07.04
Organizers: CFC, ACT Fund
This session will showcase the ACT Fund, a $100 million blended finance initiative created to tackle the chronic underfunding of agri-SMEs in developing countries. With a $20 million first-loss contribution from CFC, the Fund leverages public-private partnerships to offer de-risked, high-impact investment opportunities that support regenerative agriculture, climate resilience, and inclusive value chains.
Panel discussions will highlight innovative financing tools, technical assistance facilities, and examples of CFC-supported SMEs that are scaling sustainable agriculture. Stakeholders from across the public and private sectors will explore how blended finance can enable capital to flow where it is most urgently needed.
Through its engagement at LLDC3, the Common Fund for Commodities reaffirms its mission to empower Landlocked Developing Countries to overcome systemic barriers to growth. By mobilizing innovative finance and fostering cross-sector partnerships, the CFC is helping LLDCs unlock new opportunities for economic diversification, climate resilience, and inclusive development—ensuring that geography is no longer destiny.
Learn more: www.un.org/en/landlocked
For media inquiries, please contact:
[CFC Media Relations Team]
[Email: managing.director@common-fund.org]
[Phone: +31 20 575 4949]