LDC status is a classification of the United Nations to identify the poorest of the developing countries. Criteria include low levels of per-capita income, literacy, and manufacturing share of the country's total gross domestic product.

Low-income countries where, according to the United Nations, economic growth faces long-term impediments- such as structural weaknesses and low human resources development. A category used to guide donors and countries in allocating foreign assistance.

The world's poorest countries considered by the UN to be the least developed of the less developed countries in terms of per capita income, life expectancy and level of economic diversification.

Least Developed Countries (LDCs or Fourth World countries) are countries which according to the United Nations exhibit the lowest indicators of socioeconomic development, with the lowest Human Development Index ratings of all countries in the world.