»  Annex IV countries: governmental and non-governmental representatives met in Murcia, Spain, from 14 to 18 June for the Annex IV regional meeting and the NGO meeting, including 17 June celebrations.

»  Antigua and Barbuda: organized a national expo on themes of the environment with major attention on prevention of land degradation and drought.

»  Barbados: organized a national awareness campaign and exhibition, as well as a tree planting ceremony in the affected area of the country.

»  Benin: organized a visit to field project, the broadcasting of a documentary and other public initiatives through the whole month of June (opening of posters exposition, concert, public meetings, radio and tv talkshows, tv ads, conferences).

»  Canada : the NGO SOS Sahel addressed the issue of 'water, women and desertification', as in 1999, with the additional focus on food security; a mayors meeting took place in Quebec with representatives of Sahelian countries; a symbolic march (la marche des porteuses d'eau) and an exibition (femmes batisseurs d'Afrique) were also organized; in Montreal and Sherbkooke public meetings included an open dialogue with the Mauritanian writer Moussa Diagana, thematic workshops and media sensitization activities.

»  China : 17 june 2000 was assigned the theme of "Desertification combating and great development of West China"; all provinces were asked to organize public awareness initiatives; articles on the subject were published by the main newspapers; specific initiatives were promoted with youth; ad hoc reportages were broadcast on tv through June. A tree planting activity was also organized on 2 June.

»  Cuba : organized at the Meteorological Society of Cuba a national meeting with the participation of representatives of governmental and non-governmental organizations. The meeting addressed in particular the issue of drought and El Nino, and result currently obtained in mitigating the effects of drought. Initiatives on the same issue took place also in various provinces of the country.

»  France : the NGOs CARI and CIEPAD organized meetings, exhibitions, and document distribution with the participation of students, experts and other NGOs.

»  Ghana : the NGO Gia/Nabio Agroforestry Development Organization arranged for a tree planting initiative with the participation of selected schools, as already done for 17 june 1999.

»  Kenya : the National Steering Committee launched activities under the theme "Community capacity building for participatory resource management", and selected one of the arid and semi-arid districts of the country for the venue of the events. Events included wide media publicity, broadcasting of documentaries, involvement of schools in art competitions (poems, essays, poster preparations, dramas), tree planting and fencing off of water sources.

»  Mauritania : the NGO Association des Amis de Tamchakett organized awareness raising initiatives with the distribution of divulgative documentation and t-shirts.

»  Moldova : the environmental Movement and the National Commission to Combat Desertification organized a workshop and awareness raising manifestations, including a photo exhibit on the effects of desertification, as well as a round table with the participation of governmental, non-governmental and scientific institutions, and the media. Given the focus on drought, which currently severely affects the country, high coverage and public result was given to the nitiative.

»  Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: organized a national exhibition on themes of the environment including on land degradation.

»  Senegal : CONSERE organized a seminar on the CCD implementation process, problems encountered and possible solutions. Participants included representatives of all stakeholders and concluded the meeting by reaffirming their full engagement in support of the process.

»  Sudan : planned a visit to field project, an open day with public theater performance and music, official ceremony with statements by governmental, non governmental and UN representatives.

»  Uruguay: organized a workshop on 12-13 June on the Preliminary National Report, with the participation of all interested stakeholders. Agenda of activities (pdf, spanish only).

»  Venezuela : among other initiatives, produced and distributed a 17 June poster.

»  Zimbabwe : organized a public awareness initiative.

»  UNCCD/Bonn : the UNCCD Secretariat, together with the City of Bonn and the International Fund for Agricultural Development, assigned the 17 June 2000 media award for excellence in reporting on "Desertification: a global threat". Further details on the award are available on the CCD web page.