After two weeks of intense negotiations on the best way to sort out land degradation, desertification and drought, the most important and most inclusive United Nations land convention wrapped up in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The practically 200 international locations convening on the sixteenth Convention of the Events (COP16) to the United Nations Conference to Fight Desertification (UNCCD) dedicated to prioritize land restoration and drought resilience in nationwide insurance policies and worldwide cooperation as a vital technique for meals safety and local weather adaptation. Nations additionally made important progress in laying the groundwork for a future world drought regime, which they intend to finish at COP17 in Mongolia in 2026. In the mean time, greater than USD 12 billion had been pledged to sort out desertification, land degradation and drought around the globe, particularly in probably the most weak international locations.
Among the many foremost agreements reached at COP16 had been the creation of a Caucus for Indigenous Peoples and a Caucus for Native Communities to make sure that their distinctive views and challenges are adequately represented; a continuation of the Conference’s Science-Coverage Interface to strengthen science-based decision-making, and the mobilization of personal sector engagement underneath the Business4Land initiative.
COP16 was the most important and most inclusive UNCCD COP up to now: it attracted greater than 20,000 contributors, round 3,500 of them from civil society, and featured greater than 600 occasions as a part of the primary Motion Agenda to contain non-state actors within the work of the Conference.
In a ready assertion, United Nations Deputy Secretary-Common Amina J. Mohammed emphasised “Our work doesn’t finish with the closing of COP16. We should proceed to sort out the local weather disaster—it’s a name to motion for all of us to embrace inclusivity, innovation, and resilience. Youth and Indigenous peoples should be on the coronary heart of those conversations. Their knowledge, their voices, and their creativity are indispensable as we craft a sustainable future with renewed hope for generations to come back.”
In his closing remarks, COP16 President, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Atmosphere, Water and Agriculture Abdulrahman Alfadley, stated the assembly marked a turning level in elevating worldwide consciousness of the urgent have to speed up land restoration and drought resilience.
“The Kingdom’s internet hosting of this essential convention displays its ongoing dedication to environmental points and sustainable growth. It reaffirms its dedication to working with all events to protect ecosystems, improve worldwide cooperation to fight desertification and land degradation, and handle drought. We hope the outcomes of this session will result in a major shift that strengthens efforts to protect land, scale back its degradation, construct capacities to deal with drought, and contribute to the wellbeing of communities around the globe.”
Addressing COP16 closing plenary, Underneath-Secretary-Common and UNCCD Government Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw said: “As now we have mentioned and witnessed, the options are inside our grasp. The actions we took right this moment will form not solely the way forward for our planet but additionally the lives, livelihoods, and alternatives of those that depend upon it.”
He additional emphasised a major shift within the world strategy to land and drought points, highlighting the interconnected challenges with broader world points reminiscent of local weather change, biodiversity loss, meals safety, pressured migration, and world stability.
Monetary wants and pledges
Through the Convention, contributors heard that UNCCD estimates that not less than USD 2.6 trillion in total investments are wanted by 2030 to revive multiple billion hectares of degraded land and construct resilience to drought. This equals USD 1 billion in each day investments between now and 2030 to fulfill world land restoration targets and fight desertification and drought.
New pledges for large-scale land restoration and drought preparedness had been introduced, such because the Riyadh International Drought Resilience Partnership which attracted USD 12.15 billion to help 80 of the world’s most weak international locations in constructing their resilience to drought, together with a USD 10 billion pledge from the Arab Coordination Group.
The Nice Inexperienced Wall (GGW), an African-led initiative to revive 100 million hectares of degraded land, additionally mobilized EUR 11 million from the Italian Authorities for panorama restoration within the Sahel and EUR 3.6 million from the Austrian Authorities to strengthen the coordination and implementation of the initiative throughout 22 African international locations. The drive is a part of the GGW Accelerator, a UNCCD-supported effort to attain the ambitions for a greener, extra affluent Sahel.
Moreover, america and a number of other companion international locations and organizations introduced whole investments of practically USD 70 million to advance the Imaginative and prescient for Tailored Crops and Soils (VACS). The initiative seems to be to construct resilient meals techniques grounded in numerous, nutritious, and climate-adapted crops grown in wholesome soils.
The primary-ever UNCCD COP within the Center East and North Africa offered a possibility to shine a light-weight on the particular challenges going through the area and produce to the fore modern options to land degradation and drought.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia introduced 5 new initiatives valued at USD 60 million to ramp up local weather and environmental efforts as a part of the Saudi Inexperienced Initiative. The UNCCD COP16 Presidency additionally introduced the launch of a world sand and mud storm monitoring initiative. This effort, a part of a regional early warning system, goals to enhance present efforts overseen by the World Meteorological Group (WMO).
The Worldwide Drought Resilience Observatory (IDRO), whose prototype launched at COP16, would be the first world AI-driven platform to assist international locations assess, and improve, their capability to deal with harsher droughts. This modern device is an initiative of the Worldwide Drought Resilience Alliance (IDRA), of which Saudi Arabia just lately grew to become a member.
Better voice for Indigenous Peoples and different non-state actors
In a landmark determination, Events requested the creation of a Caucus for Indigenous Peoples and a Caucus for Native Communities. The target is to make sure that their distinctive views and priorities are adequately represented within the work of the Conference. The declaration ‘Sacred Lands’, offered in the course of the inaugural Indigenous Peoples’ Discussion board at a UNCCD COP, underscored the function of Indigenous Peoples in sustainable useful resource administration and referred to as for better involvement in world land and drought governance, together with by way of participation in land restoration efforts.
“Right now, historical past has been made”, stated Indigenous Individuals consultant Oliver Tester from Australia. “We stay up for championing our dedication to guard Mom Earth by way of a devoted Caucus, and depart this house trusting that our voices be heard.”
COP16 additionally noticed the largest youth participation up to now, constructing on the UNCCD Youth Engagement Strategy and Action Plan, that seeks to present youth a extra distinguished function in land and drought negotiations and motion, and supply technical and monetary help for youth-led initiatives.
On the gender entrance, international locations underscored the necessity to pay particular consideration to all types of discrimination confronted by ladies and women when designing and implementing coverage and programmes associated to land degradation and drought.
In recognition of the essential function of the non-public sector, which at the moment contributes solely 6% of financing in direction of land restoration and drought resilience, Events have mandated the UNCCD Secretariat and the International Mechanism to mobilize non-public sector engagement underneath the Business4Land initiative. The choice emphasizes the vital function of personal sector advocacy, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) methods, and sustainable finance in addressing DLDD challenges. The choice comes after the Business4Land Forum, which introduced collectively the largest-ever variety of non-public sector contributors at a UNCCD COP — greater than 400— from industries like finance, vogue, agri-food, and prescription drugs.
Stronger science on land and drought
Acknowledging the function of science as the muse for sound insurance policies, the Events agreed on the continuation of UNCCD’s Science-Coverage Interface (SPI), which was created at COP11 in 2013 to translate scientific findings into suggestions for decision-makers. At COP16, for example, the SPI offered definitive proof that three quarters of the Earth’s ice-free floor have develop into completely drier previously 30 years, with a predicted 5 billion individuals dwelling in drylands by 2100, exhibiting the urgency to take motion.
A brand new UNCCD report, The Global Threat of Drying Lands: Regional and global aridity trends and future projections, revealed that some 77.6% of Earth’s land has skilled drier situations for the reason that Nineteen Nineties in comparison with the earlier 30-year interval. Over the identical interval, drylands — an arid space with low rainfall— expanded by about 4.3 million km2 equal to an space practically a 3rd bigger than India, the world’s seventh largest nation. Drylands now cowl 40.6% of all land on Earth excluding Antarctica.
Seven of 9 planetary boundaries are negatively impacted by unsustainable land use, highlighted the UNCCD report Stepping back from the precipice: Transforming land management to stay within planetary boundaries,produced in collaboration with the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, which explains how land degradation is undermining Earth’s capability to maintain a rising human inhabitants. The report reiterates that agriculture accounts for 23% of greenhouse gasoline emissions, 80% of deforestation, and 70% of freshwater use, and requires an pressing land use transition to step away from the precipice.
In line with UNCCD’s newly launched World Drought Atlas and Economics of Drought Resilience reviews, droughts have an effect on the livelihoods of 1.8 billion individuals worldwide, pushing already weak communities to the brink. In addition they value an estimated USD 300 billion per 12 months, threatening key financial sectors reminiscent of agriculture, power and water.
From Riyadh to Mongolia
For the primary time, UNCCD Events decided encouraging the sustainable administration, restoration and conservation of rangelands — huge ecosystems used for grazing — forward of COP17, to be hosted by Mongolia in 2026 in the course of the Worldwide 12 months of Rangelands and Pastoralists. These ecosystems cowl half of the Earth’s terrestrial floor and are the dominant land use on the planet’s drylands, however have lengthy been missed and are disappearing quicker than rainforests.
The degradation of rangelands threatens one-sixth of global food supplies, doubtlessly depleting one-third of the Earth’s carbon reserves. Some two billion individuals who dwell in pastoral areas are among the many world’s most weak within the face of desertification, land degradation and drought.
