Statements

Madame Minister, Marina da Silva,Ladies and gentlemen,Bom dia!I have indelible memories of my visit to Brazil last June, when Minister Marina Silva invited me to visit the Caatinga region with her. It was instructive for me to discover the extent of land degradation and drought in a country mostly known for its lush forests and vast rivers. It was news to me that the arid and semi-arid zones of Brazil cover 1.4 million km2 and that 59 per cent of the territory is affected by drought, 1/3 of which by extreme drought! How to feed these people? How to supply them with clean water and reliable energy? How, in these conditions, can we promote industrialization, create jobs and ensure human well-being? Brazil’s case is just an example of how land degradation and drought are having serious impacts in the world. Excellencies, Ladies and gentlemen, We are living in a paradoxical bubble. While in theory the world has never accumulated so much wealth, there have never been such striking disparities and inequalities, so many displaced populations, so much forced migration. The number of people without jobs or secure livelihoods is rising inexorably in many parts of the world. While certain countries in the world are reservoirs of mineral resources and agricultural commodities, forest and fishery products, some of these same countries are experiencing the most appalling poverty. This calls for a rethinking of our economic models. For far too long, we have adopted policies of extraction, exportation of raw material, processing abroad, re-exporting, using and discarding. This type of linear extractive economy, whether agricultural or mining, often leads to inequality, resentment and dissension. Perpetuating this model in this 21st century is ruinous and counterproductive. It is obsolete and needs to be reviewed. Given the current level of degradation of our land (up to 40 per cent of fertile land is already degraded), and in view of the trends towards 2050, we have little choice but to review our policies and practices. And the G20 Environmental meetings is the place to start rethinking, perhaps with the South African Presidency. Challengingly, we must produce at least 50 per cent more food, while leaving a smaller footprint on the planet. Producing more nutritious food with less: less land, less water, less pollution. Not an easy equation, but not impossible to solve. One of the most accessible, sustainable and natural solutions is large-scale restoration of degraded land. In addition to the fertile land already in use, we have a reservoir of 1.5 billion hectares of degraded land which can be rehabilitated, cared for and put back into production. The investment required is relatively modest in view of the return on investment and economic income, estimated at between 7 to 30 times the original investment.Beyond economics, bringing degraded land back to health provides multiple other solutions: Restoring degraded land is often the best way of combating forced migration, recognizing that people have no choice but to flee when they cannot provide food and dignity to their families. The correlations between forced migration and arid lands has been established…Restoring degraded land therefore fights against poverty (think of those who have no other asset than their ancestral land); Investing in land restoration can also reduce conflicts and insecurity, particularly conflicts over access to fertile land and scarce water. Land and Water are often the (neglected) root causes or the (poorly understood) triggers of conflicts. Finally, land restoration meets climate change ambitions (both mitigation and adaptation), biodiversity (target 2 of the Global Biodiversity Framework) and, of course, the fight against land degradation (Land Degradation Neutrality), i.e. the ambitions of the so-called Rio Conventions. It is encouraging that the G20 established in 2020 a Global Land Restoration Initiative aiming at halving degraded lands in the world by 2040. The implementation of such a visionary initiative is however timid and needs to be boosted throughout the entire G20 block and beyond. Excellencies, Ladies and gentlemen Now let me turn to drought. An issue which affects us all – rich and poor. Right here in Latin America, we are currently witnessing the lowest water levels on record in many of the rivers in the Amazon basin – and this follows the most severe drought faced in 45 years. Across the world, droughts are occurring more frequently and more severely – up by one third since 2000. An estimated 3 in 4 people worldwide will be affected by drought by 2050. And sadly, droughts never come alone: wildfires, food insecurity, economic downturn, disruption of energy generation, and even disruption of supply chains as we recently witnessed in the Panama Canal. It is incredible to witness the burning of the Amazon rainforest as well as the Pantanal, reported as the world’s largest wetland. Before I conclude, allow me to extend a special invitation to all of you to join us at UNCCD COP16, taking place from December 2nd to 13th, 2024, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. You laready heard from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, our wonderful host who spares no effort to make this COP a turning point in the life of the Convention. In Riyadh, Leaders, Ministers, Entrepreneurs, Indigenous People, Women and Youth will each have a chance to engage in shaping future policies and accelerating action on land restoration and drought resilience. Together with our hosts, we look forward to continuing these important conversations on a global stage.

Excellencies,Ladies and Gentlemen,It is a great honor to be with you today. I would like to thank the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for organizing this event and for hosting the 16th session of the UNCCD Conference of the Parties. This event today will pave the way for the biggest and most significant UNCCD Conference of the Parties we have ever had over the past 30 years.COP16 in Riyadh will be the largest UN land and drought conference to date, and the first UNCCD COP held in the Middle East and North Africa region, which knows first-hand the impacts of desertification, land degradation and drought, and now floods.Riyadh 2024 is expected to be a turning point, a game-changer for the global drought resilience agenda.For long, people thought that land degradation and drought are local issues, to be left to those governments that are directly affected and need to address themselves. For long, desertification has been perceived as an issue for one region or two to address. Today, we know, thanks to science, that our world is totally interconnected. Scarcity of fertile land and water threaten our global security, affect our economy, our food security and amplify forced migration. Land use is the second largest source of greenhouse gas emissions and land degradation leads to further loss of biodiversity and livelihoods for the poor whose only asset sometimes is land. Each year, sand and dust storms lift up to two billion tons of aerosols to the atmosphere, causing serious air pollution, leading to diseases and economic loss. So, land degradation and drought may happen locally, but they are not local issues. The food we eat, the coffee or the tea we enjoyed this morning, the clothes we wear and part of the air we breathe are all coming from the land. Often, from thousands of miles from where we live.Drought and land degradation stand therefore as a major global challenge impacting food security, ecosystems, production, human health, jobs, and access to water, often leading to famine, conflicts and mass migration. I like to say that land is the only GDP of the poor. Let us make it clear: land degradation is a serious issue but there is a silver lining. The good news is that we can halt and reverse land loss. Indeed, land restoration provides us with multiple solutions: solutions to climate, biodiversity, security and economic stability. Large-scale land restoration is perfectly achievable. Bringing degraded land back to health is not only feasible, but it is economically and socially viable. So, in Riyadh, economists will meet with business people, agronomists with investors, civil society organizations with government leaders, youth with women’s group, scientists with policy makers. In Riyadh, Parties are expected to agree on how to tackle the critical issue of drought. After many years of discussions and negotiations, it is time to close the loop and move on to implementation. The most vulnerable communities expect concrete results and bold decisions on drought. In Riyadh, Parties are also expected to move from pledges to concrete implementation on land restoration. It does not suffice to express intentions, or to make big announcements. Our youth, our farmers, our women’s groups all expect to see more concrete action on land restoration. Finally, COP16 will help us understand that land loss and water scarcity have a human face. Together, we will tackle these most complex issues. Together, we will win the battle. Together, we will sail to a safer destination. 

Excellence Monsieur le Premier Ministre Madame la Présidente de la Conférence des ministres africains de l’environnementMesdames et Messieurs les Ministres, et Chefs de délégations,Monsieur le Président de la COP 15 de UNCCD,Excellences Mesdames et Messieurs les Ambassadeurs,Mesdames et Messieurs les Représentants des Organisations Internationales et des Agences du Système des Nations Unies,Mesdames et messieurs,—————————————Le 3 mai 2022, le Président de la République de Côte d’Ivoire recevait, dans cette même salle, des Leaders du monde, pour l’ouverture de la COP15 de la Convention des Nations-Unies sur la Lutte contre la Désertification.  SEM Alassane Ouattara jetait, à l’occasion, les bases d’un programme ambitieux de restauration des terres. Cette COP15, et l’Initiative d’Abidjan sur la restauration des terres, sont restées gravées dans nos mémoires comme étant une des étapes importantes dans la vie de la Convention. Comme pour nous replonger dans les sources d’eau rafraîchissantes du Gbancô (Banco), ou nous concerter sous les baobabs de la Comoé, nous revoilà en terre africaine de Côte d’Ivoire. En quête sinon d’une fraction de la mémoire desEléphants, du moins de la sagesse ressortant de l’arbre à palabres.Le fossé entre les besoins d’une population croissante, et la disponibilité de terres productives, ce fossé dis-je, n’a jamais été grand. Par ailleurs, les revendications des jeunes africains qui aspirent au développement plus juste et plus durable n’ont jamais été aussi audibles. Fort heureusement, l’Afrique n’a jamais été aussi proche d’un consensus ministériel cohérent, avant de prendre part aux trois COP des Conventions de la génération de Rio. Voilà qui plante le décor de l’importance des assises d’Abidjan.  Excellencies,  Ladies and gentlemen,  As we gather here in Abidjan for this special session of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment, large parts of the African continent are wilting.  The Greater Horn of Africa has not yet recovered from its longest drought in 40 years. The dry spell is not sparing North Africa and the Mediterranean region. A couple of years ago, it was Madagascar and the Sahel that were dry. As we speak, the Sahel is severely affected by floods notably in Niger, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Mali and Sudan. There is hardly any year where floods, drought or loss of fertile land is not hitting the continent. It is heartbreaking to see that Zimbabwe, Malawi and Zambia --once breadbaskets—are listed among the most affected by malnutrition caused by drought. In Namibia, crippling drought is pushing both people and wildlife to the brink.The loss of productive land across the continent, coupled with the disruptions caused by the increased and erratic rainfall patterns, have reached such levels that young African men and women have no choice but to abandon their farms; flee their villages and their countries. This amplifies a phenomenon that is increasingly making headlines across the world. A phenomenon at the center of the many electoral campaigns we saw this year:  forced migration. In other words, because land degradation fails to garner the political attention it deserves from the countries of origin of African migrants, it is indirectly capturing the attention in third countries. Often for the wrong reasons, leading to a cascade of unsuitable solutions. It is also remarkable that political discussions across the world, and in Africa in particular, barely scratch the surface of the complex relationship between land degradation, climate change and the destruction of natural habitats on the one hand, and conflict and insecurity on the other.  Yet it is a well-known fact that despair breeds hatred. Hunger fuels frustration and resentment. Poverty and the lack of educational and economic opportunities make young people easy prey to trafficking as well as armed conflict and violence. Bad governance creates gusts of frustration which, once set in motion, become very difficult to contain. What could be more paradoxical in the eyes of young people—the overwhelming majority of the African people—than to see their soil, subsoil and seabed overflowing with so much potential, while the opportunities for wealth creation are so few? What could be more intriguing than being fed with speeches claiming that Africa has more arable land than any other continent in the world; when it is the African continent that receives the most food aid?  This begs two questions: is Africa properly addressing the root causes of land degradation? Is Africa prepared to mitigate the impact of the more frequent and more intense droughts -and floods- that are hitting a fast growing, vulnerable population? Addressing the root causes of land degradation points to a revision of some development policies. Reviewing agricultural development policies in the light of real African needs as well as new geopolitical priorities and realities. The land must not be seen only as a source of extraction: extraction of agricultural products, extraction of minerals and extraction of water resources. Nor must the land be seen only through the lenses of exploitation. As the land is our most precious asset for our food, our clothes, our fuels and our animals' feed, we need to adopt a managerial rather than an exploitative attitude. An asset— especially such as a precious asset— ought to be managed, with a whole-of-government and a whole-of-society approach. What's more, the time has come to create value chains for products extracted from the soil and the depths of African lands. Creating jobs and added value before export. Giving economic value— and not just the market value of raw produce— to agriculture.  Changing our relationship with nature also means adapting to natural hazards. Rather than being reactive to slow-onset disasters, we need to prepare for them, including the silent killers, such as drought. In the same way as anticipating and monitoring non-communicable diseases, each country needs to develop its own drought and flood resilience plan.  Mesdames et Messieurs,Les chiffres du dernier rapport quadriennal de UNCCD montrent qu’en dépit d’importants efforts de restauration des terres, 163 millions d’ha de terres se sont dégradées en Afrique entre 2015 et 2019. Si cette superficie dégradée en seulement 4 ans était une nation, ç’aurait été le 5e pays le plus vaste d’Afrique ! N’est-il pas venu le temps de traiter ces plaies béantes qui menacent l’avenir de tout un continent ?  N’est-il pas venu le temps de repenser les politiques d’extraction agricole et minière ? Le secteur primaire représente la principale source de revenus en Afrique. De sa gestion rationnelle et durable dépendra donc le futur économique du continent.Offrir une autre voie, une approche alternative et plus durable à la gestion des ressources naturelles et l’atténuation des effets de la sécheresse, tel pourrait être le message clé de l’Afrique à la seizième session de la Conférence des Parties à la Convention UNCCD prévue à Riyadh, Royaume d’Arabie Saoudite, du 2 au 13 décembre prochain.Il est attendu de cette COP16 d’être un tournant historique pour adopter une nouvelle approche de gestion des terres et de résilience à la sécheresse. Nous anticipons que Riyadh sera non seulement une belle et grande COP, mais qu’elle laissera un héritage sans précédent pour construire un monde plus résilient à la sécheresse et à la dégradation de la nature. Les agendas des terres, du climat et de la biodiversité étant fortement interconnectés, une approche globale et intégrée est fortement recommandée. Quelle belle coïncidence car la présente session intervient au moment où nous nous préparons tous, avant la fin de cette année, aux COP des 3 Conventions de Rio. La rencontre d’Abidjan vient, donc, à point nommé car se situant à la croisée des chemins de l’agenda environnemental mondial. L’Afrique doit inéluctablement réaffirmer et renforcer son leadership et aller en Arabie Saoudite avec une position confortable et concertée. Une sagesse africaine dit ceci : « Quand la tête est là, il ne faut pas que le genou prétende porter le bonnet ».Alors quand l’Afrique est là, présente en force, qui d’autre portera le bonnet à Riyadh ?  Je vous remercie.

On behalf of the UNCCD, I welcome the UN System-wide Strategy for Water and Sanitation to further align our efforts to provide quality water for all. At UNCCD, we are particularly focusing on ensuring the availability of water through one of the planet’s most important natural assets: our land. Land is a natural ally in our drive to secure quality water supplies. Yet up to 40% of our planet’s land is already degraded, affecting nearly half of the world’s population. Meanwhile, global freshwater demand is on track to outstrip supply by 40% by 2030, putting societies, economies, and ecosystems on the line. In this context, we cannot afford to continue taking our land and its crucial role in the provision of clean water, food and energy for granted.   Healthy lands are better at filtrating water, allowing aquifers to recharge, retaining soil moisture, and even supporting cloud formation!   Additionally, healthy lands reduce water runoff, erosion and the risk of floods, which can trigger serious sanitation and public health problems and, tragically, loss of life.   We tend to think of drought as the absence of rain. But often, it is also the result of poor land management, meaning we are only as resilient to climate change--and its impacts on water quality and availability--as our land is. Addressing water and land management as part of drought resilience policies is therefore critical. The new UN System-wide strategy is an opportunity to recognize this vital connection between water and land and to put in place the right policies, incentives and investments to secure these precious resources for present and future generations. 

My task today is: Share some facts about Land degradation and drought and how the loss of this natural capital is affecting everything we do. Propose some solutions and options that we can consider in our development plans Share views about the UNCCD COP16, a unique opportunity for the world to turn the tide and tackle the scourge of land loss and drought.   Land degradation and its consequences: As we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the UNCCD, the only universally binding treaty on land management and drought mitigation, we are breaking new world records: Never have so many people been affected by land degradation and the effects of drought never has fertile land been so degraded (in the time it takes to breathe in and out, the equivalent of 4 football pitches is sliding inexorably towards loss). This loss is mainly due to our extractions: food, cotton, mining and overgrazing Never before has one person in four, as is now the case across the world, been severely affected by drought. More than just a lack of rainwater, drought is synonymous with food and energy insecurity, the disintegration of thousands of family units and a drastic drop in economic growth Finally, never before has the combination of drought and the loss of productive land led to so much forced migration. Millions of young women and men have had no choice but to venture onto increasingly dangerous roads, or to get caught up in illegal trafficking, or even to fall easy prey to violent groups.  More than 40% of the world's land is now degraded, at a time when there has never been a greater need to produce food, cotton for an explosive fashion industry, and minerals - including rare metals - for an energy transition driven by the response to climate change. In fact, to respond to the needs of the 10 billion people, including 3 billion people in the middle class, experts estimate that two-thirds of the cities in developing countries have not yet been built and that 50% more food needs to be produced by 2050.  Food: let's take a look at our menu for tonight. Not just to check our allergies and dietary restrictions. The equation is simple: up to 99 per cent of our calories come from land. Land feeds us; it quenches our thirst; it clothes us and provides us with some of the oxygen we breathe. Therefore, our wellbeing is largely dependent on the health of our land. Contrary to certain beliefs, we did not inherit this land from our ancestors. In truth, we are borrowing it from our children. Seen from this angle, any excessive exploitation could be considered a serious abuse of future generations. This begs the question of whether or not we are robing food from the table of the yet-unborn.   So what can we do about it? Land restauration and drought resilience: The good news is that we can have a descent life on earth without sawing off the branch on which we are sitting. In other words, we can make human well-being compatible with achieving planetary equilibrium. Technically, it can be done. What we need is the collective resolve to reset our relationship with nature.  Firstly, as citizens of the earth, if we halve food waste, we will have the most positive impact on land, water and energy.  Furthermore, by giving farmers and pastoralists access to clean energy (ON or OFF-GRID), we will considerably reduce post-harvest losses. Reducing food loss and food waste increases our income while at the same time reducing loss of land and water. Food wastage is first and foremost land and water loss. It's also good for the climate, the economy and human well-being.  By reducing the cost of money (i.e. interest rates) in poor countries and facilitating the development of value chains, we can create a local economy and generate income for all. In doing so, we will have a positive impact on the land, as farmers will be better able to reinvest in their natural capital to ensure the sustainability of production, rather than continuing to raze the soil to the ground to extract the last productive sap.  The other good news is that we have a billion and a half hectares of land that we will be able to restore to a productive state and circuit by 2030, thanks to the many techniques and technologies for restoring land.  I'm talking about farmland, rangelands, conservation areas, quarries and mining sites, public and private spaces, large and small agricultural areas, and even urban and peri-urban spaces.  Land restoration is socially viable, creating millions of green jobs. Restoration is economically profitable: each dollar invested could generate up to 30 dollars in economic income.  We are witnessing the birth of a new land restoration industry throughout the world. This opens the way for PPPs and other win-win agreements with communities and other landowners.  As for drought, enormous scientific and analytical progress has been made. They all converge to the same conclusion: we need to change our approach, and move towards a proactive one rather than continue to get bogged down in reactive responses, which are ten times more expensive and just as ineffective. In other words, every dollar invested in drought resilience can generate up to 10 dollars in economic development. Droughts (often followed by floods) are amongst the most disruptive of all natural hazards. Droughts are silent killers: they kill animals or even people. Droughts disrupt energy generation, from hydro-power to nuclear power Droughts disrupt our social fabric, amplifying forced migration and even provoking surges of suicides… Less known to the general public is how droughts are affecting supply chains, as is the case in the Panama Canal this year. Some leaders and decision makers often ask me whether we can do something against drought. It is true that we can little to stop them from happening. But we can do much better in terms of preparadeness and response. Five areas need to be considered simultaneously:   Risk assessment, early warning and national planning Water supply, agricultural practices and nature-based solutions; Economic resilience and business response; Drought finance and insurance Emergency and humanitarian response The overall objective is to progressively build more resilient societies and economies, and progressively reduce humanitarian aid. Riyadh, December 2024: the moonshot moment.  Although Riyadh is the sixteenth meeting of the Contracting Parties to the UNCCD, it is more than just a traditional UN conference. The conference will mark a turning point in our perception of land and soils, a natural capital that we have always taken for granted, infinite and inexhaustible. In the words of UN SG Antonio Gutteres: « we depend on land for our survival, yet we treat it like dirt ». Realising that Riyadh is a rendez-vous with history, the Leaders' Summit to be held on 2 and 3 December should reaffirm the absolute necessity of managing our common heritage, that which the human species (a terrestrial species par excellence) has in common.  The leaders of the private sector, who will also be invited, should unequivocally align themselves with the only viable path for business and for a decent life on earth, the path, as I said, of sustainable land and water management.  Among the expectations of Riyadh COP16, two items stand out: To adopt an historic decision on managing the impacts of the recurrent and increasingly intense droughts that are affecting the world Adopting a clear stance and a clear decision to restore degraded land on a large scale, in order to maintain the natural balances that are essential to life on earth Beyond drought and land, COP will cover : Sand and dust storms Gender Youth engagement The gender gap one land ownership is incredible. While aggregate figures show that only 1 ha of land in 4 in the world is owned by women, the percentage can be as low as 4% of female land ownership in some regions. In Riyadh, COP16 is also expected to discuss youth engagement. Up to 1 billion young people in the world are ready to engage into land restauration, creating green jobs and boosting the economy. Saudi Arabia, as the host country, will provide the tens of thousands of participants expected to attend with the best possible facilities, with a tailor-made site. The UNCCD Secretariat and the host country wish to set up a COP-Legacy: the Riyadh Global Drought Resilience Partnership. This unprecedented Partnership targets the 80 least well-off countries (WB ranking) and aims to build the resilience (ecological, economic and social) of the target countries, in order to consign to history the terrible images of distress, destruction and death that our screens vomit out,  year-in year-out, as a result of droughts. As I said before, droughts are natural hazards and cannot be stopped. But we can mitigate its impact and turn off our screens those images of starving children, corpses and bones.  Ladies and gentlemen, Riyadh COP will be the moment of truth, first and foremost for the countries of the MENA region, which are hosting this Conference for the first time. This region has every right to exercise its leadership and soft power on such a crucial yet non-controversial issue. The timing couldn't be better. It's up to us to grasp it. 

Ladies and Gentlemen, Distinguished Members of the GEF Council, Ibn Khaldun, the renowned Tunisian father of sociology in the Middle Ages, once said: "He who finds a new path is a pathfinder, even if the trail has to be found through the desert." We are pathfinders. Together, we are forging new and innovative trails towards sustainability and resilience, even in the most challenging environments. For many of us who have been observing this institution function and transform itself over time, the GEF is more than just a facility. It’s a family. It’s an example of what we can do together, to address global issues. An example of what we should be doing more and better. Setting clear rules of engagement while supporting -efficiently- the countries and communities in need. As far as land restoration is concerned, I am pleased to note several proposed GEF Trust Fund financing packages for large scale land restoration initiatives are being considered at this Council. We need large scale and multi-country actions to bring degraded land back to health, build resilience to drought, secure food for all, reduce tensions and conflicts and avert forced migration. Yes, Land restoration provides multiple solutions, and responds perfectly to GEF mandate: biodiversity conservation, climate change, fight against land degradation and pollution. Yet, despite the clear uptick in investments, according to all available data, we are not winning the battle and should certainly not rest on our laurels. Land degradation is ruining the global economy, destructuring the social fabric of our communities, destroying fragile ecosystems, threatening the global security. Such as a virus, land loss is attacking the most fragile communities, accentuating poverty and amplifying the impacts of climate change and biodiversity degradation. Dear Council members, While droughts by all means are not a new phenomenon, we are observing the increase and intensity of their occurrence. 29% more droughts are observed since the beginning of the new millennia. The GEF Council ought to respond to the increase demands for help. Droughts are among the most viscous disruptors of our time: droughts disrupt food, water, energy and even global supply chains, as exemplified by the disruptions created this year in the Panama Canal. GEF Council may wish to pay attention to these trends. Droughts are exacerbated by Climate Change, Ecosystem change, habitat destruction. As we all know Southern Africa is currently facing an extreme environmental and humanitarian crisis as a severe drought takes a stronger hold on the region. Eastern Africa suffered for 4 consecutive years. Many countries Latin America and Asia are hit hard. Over 100 countries, including small islands have been affected in the last years. You may be aware Senegal and Spain created the International Drought Resilience Alliance. Nearly 40 countries and over 30 organizations are working together for global drought resilience. IDRA partners are clear there is an urgent need to establish effective early warning systems (that work across borders), bolster that land-water management nexus and mobilize sustainable financing to improve drought resilience. So, since I am addressing the GEF Council, I take the opportunity to raise with you – and stress to Council Members - the urgency of investing more in land restoration and drought resilience. Separately.  And together and scale! Large scale multi country land based approaches – that deliver multiple global benefits - combined with the integrated programmes of GEF8 - represent a clear path forward. By addressing the interconnected challenges of land degradation, water scarcity, biodiversity loss and climate change, we will be achieving more comprehensive and lasting results. The recently launched Blue and Green Islands Integrated Program (BGI-IP) by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Global Environment Facility provides a case in point. We need more. We can do more, whiting existing resources. We should much more! We are going to be working with SIDS to strengthen their regional programming and we are expecting strong participation of SIDs in our upcoming COP in Riyadh in December 2024. In the SIDS – or LIONS (Large Island Ocean States) as Carlos Manuel has started to call them, data plays a crucial role. Accurate, timely, and accessible data enables us to make informed decisions, measure progress, and adapt our strategies as needed. Investing in data collection and analysis is not just an option; it is a necessity. Vital for decision support – in the small islands, in the hyper arid areas and in the high mountains. So GEF’s investments and those of other Partners are directed where they are most needed. With this in mind, the UNCCD has recently engaged 18 “champion countries” in the Land Degradation Neutrality Target Setting Process 2.0 to demonstrate how countries can strengthen their LDN targets - and support better land use decisions by mainstreaming LDN into their integrated land use planning frameworks. To make better decisions - again with GEF support. All of this leads to stronger policies, improved implementation, and greater resilience. Especially in the face of drought and flood. It is a proactive approach that saves lives, protects livelihoods, and preserves our natural resources. As we look ahead to UNCCD COP 16 in Riyadh, we are filled with ambition and determination. As the main financing instrument for the Rio Conventions, we look forward to the GEF’s strong participation in our upcoming COP this year. We look forward to land and drought – not just capturing the Council’s attention.  But capturing more investment too. The UNCCD COP – from 2nd-13th of December – is an ideal opportunity to reinforce our investments in land.  And underline the critical issue of drought resilience.  COP16 will open with a Leaders Summit where Heads of State and Government, CEOs from the Private Sector and Heads of Institutions will be invited. A Ministerial Segment is also foreseen as well as large gatherings of Civil Society, Local communities and Indigenous groups. Seven Thematic Days will help design and formulate a strong action agenda, which will be an excellent leverage to the GEF. UN agencies, the WB and NGOs have agreed to play a lead role in organizing the Days. This year COP16 provides an opportunity for the GEF to showcase the results achieved to date – especially in transformative large scale change and nurturing the enabling environment – at the landscape level. This COP is not just a meeting; it will be a milestone in our journey towards a land degradation-neutral world.  I extend a warm invitation to all of the GEF family of stakeholders to join us in Riyadh from the 3rd-13th of December. Your presence and participation will be invaluable.  Though the path is not always easy – we will be blazing a trail together.

Mr Chairman, Honorable members of the Committee Your excellency, Minister of Environment and Climate, Ladies and Gentlemen, On behalf of the secretariat of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), I would like to thank the Committee for welcoming me today; especially, as Brazil is looking to secure productive lands and build the resilience of economic sectors, communities, and ecosystems to drought. Promoting sustainable Land management and building resilience to drought: these are the two pillars, the two reason d’être of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification.   As the only global treaty dealing with land and drought, the UNCCD celebrates its 30th birthday on 17 June. Remember, it is one of the three Conventions conceived in Rio de Janeiro, at the famous 1992 Summit. After two years of gestation, the Convention was signed in Paris in 1994. We support countries and regions in developing plans, policies and interventions to halt and reverse the loss of fertile land; to create national plans for drought resilience. Brazil ratified the Convention in 1997, integrating the treaty into its legal framework. Brazil is a global leader in agricultural commodity trading; one of the top hydropower producers in the world; and is home to ecosystems that regulate rainfall patterns across the country —and the entire region. Yet, Brazil is affected by more and more severe and frequent droughts, disrupting food production, rural economy and human security. This means Brazil is uniquely placed to appreciate the centrality of sustainable land and water management to all economic and social sectors. Now, why are land degradation and drought a top concern? Consider this: in optimum conditions, it takes between 200 and 400 years for 1 cm of topsoil to form. However, every second, I repeat every second, the world loses the equivalent of four football fields of healthy land due to the destruction of native vegetation and poor land management. Annually, this adds up to 100 million hectares, an area larger than the State of Mato Grosso. If current trends continue, we will need to restore 1.5 billion hectares of land by 2030 to reach the Land Degradation Neutrality goal. Brazil accounts among the countries that continue to lose fertile land every day, every second. In parallel, droughts are hitting faster and more often, posing an unprecedented emergency on a planetary scale: last year, 1 in 4 people in the world were affected by drought, and events have increased by 29% since the year 2000. Drought is a natural phenomenon. However, global warming and the way we treat our land are combining to create human-made droughts. We see their devastating consequences all around us: crop failure, disruptions in freight transportation (as is the case this year with the disruption of the Panama Canal), soaring energy costs, loss of livelihoods, conflicts over scarce resources, large-scale forced migrations. Again, Brazil is one of the most freshwater in the world. Yet, it is no stranger to the impacts of land degradation and drought: from the lingering impacts of a historic drought in the Amazon, to pressures on hydropower and agricultural production, to the expansion of semi-arid and even arid lands. Mr Chairman, Drought is a hazard, but it needn’t be a disaster, as long as we manage it proactively. With the right investments, policies, and incentives, it is possible to decouple the severity of drought from its most serious impacts on societies, economies, and ecosystem functions. Any single dollar invested in drought resilience and prevention can yield up to ten dollars in return. It is therefore encouraging to see Brazil join the International Drought Resilience Initiative. While we can not stop droughts from occurring, with early warnings, preparedness and adapted responses, we can better mitigate its impacts. Since we are as resilient to drought and climate change as our lands are, it is crucial we make agrifood systems part of the solution, incentivizing sustainable land and water management practices that replenish, rather than squander, the natural capital all of us depend on. From that perspective, what I saw two days ago in Caatinga is encouraging. It was indeed inspiring to witness a whole of Government, in fact a whole of society approach to combatting desertification and building the resilience to drought. This said, much remains to be done in Caatinga and other areas affected by land loss and drought. As representatives of the People of Brazil, your role, honourable Parliamentarians can not be understated. We need to plan at the landscape level. This calls for land-use planning to identify the areas that are best suited for food production, protection of water sources, and ecosystem conservation. At the farm level, sustainable land management can combine precision agriculture to optimize the use of irrigation and fertilizers, with low-tech and nature-based solutions like agroforestry, crop rotation or reduced tilling. Again, coming back to Caatinga, low-tech approaches such as the cisternas are making a difference. To further buttress productive systems, and to protect the livelihoods of the 38 million Brazilians who are most vulnerable to desertification and drought, it is also vital this Parliament allocates a robust budget to support the communities: enhancing water management, building resilience to drought; monitoring and assessment; and supporting a just land transition. Especially, in the Caatinga drylands and the Cerrado, which underpins the water security in Brazil and beyond. At the UNCCD secretariat, we stand ready to support Brazil in its journey towards a more resilient future — but it all starts with your decision to prioritize land and drought in your policies and in the budget you allocate to implementing them. Your leadership ---Brazil’s leadership--- can prevent human suffering, protect economic sectors and set an example for nations across the region and around the world. Particularly, in the lead-up to UNCCD COP16, which will be held from 2-13 December in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. UNCCD COP16 is gearing up to be the largest, and most ambitious, global summit on land and drought to date. Together, we will chart the way for Land Degradation Neutrality targets, drought resilience frameworks, and stronger agrifood systems, and work to unlock a multibillion land restoration industry. Given Brazil’s active environmental diplomacy, the country has a particular role to play as a member of groups such a the G20, BRICS, G77 and LAC. Land degradation and Drought issues are rather unifying. They provide excellent opportunities for countries to play their soft power. Brazil’s active diplomacy and extraordinary political influence will be needed to make the Riyadh COP a moonshot moment for land and fought in the world. Finally, COP16 provide opportunity to Members of Parliament from country Parties to actively participate in the Conference. We look forward to your active engagement in the lead up to, and during COP16, and stand ready to support Brazil in its drive to be a beacon for sustainable land management. Thank you

Your Excellency Minister Marina Silva, Your Excellency Minister Wellington Dias, Dear governor Jerónimo Rodrigues, I also would like to recognize here the authorities of the University of the São Francisco Valley - Univasf   that is hosting us today, Ladies and gentlemen, On behalf of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) I thank you wholeheartedly for the warm welcome to Caatinga. Especially, for sharing your experience in securing resilient lands and livelihoods in the drylands. On 17 June, the United Nations Convention on Land and Drought (UNCCD) will mark a significant milestone - 30 years of commitment to our planet. As the only legally binding global instrument focused on land and drought, the UNCCD stands proudly alongside the Biodiversity and Climate Conventions as one of the three Rio Conventions, born out of the world famous 1992 Summit. We support our 197 Parties in designing policies, investments, and interventions to halt and reverse the loss of productive land; to create national plans for drought resilience; and to reduce the negative impact of land and soil loss in vulnerable communities. Brazil ratified the Convention in 1997, integrating the treaty into its legal framework. Caatinga is home to scores of species, many of them unique to this biome, and is said to be the most populous dryland area on the planet. Its very existence acts as living proof of the ability of plants, animals, and culturally diverse communities to adapt to semiarid environments. However, life in the planet’s —life that required hundreds and even thousands of years to evolve— is now under pressure from the combined effects of land degradation and climate change. Every year, the world loses 100 million hectares of fertile land, an area larger than the state of Mato Grosso. More than half of the world’s rangelands are degraded, compromising food security and the soil carbon stock, which comes only after the ocean’s.  If current trends continue, we will need to restore 1.5 billion hectares of land by 2030 to reach the Land Degradation Neutrality goal. Barren lands cannot adequately infiltrate and retain water, increasing runoff and accelerating erosion, instead. As a result of global warming and the way we treat our lands, droughts are hitting faster and more often, posing an emergency on a planetary scale: last year, 1 in 4 people were affected by drought worldwide, and events have increased by 29% since the year 2000. Drought is a hazard, but it needn’t be a disaster. With evidence-based policies, practices, and investments, it is possible to decouple the severity of drought from its most serious impacts on lives and livelihoods. Earlier today, I joined a visit to the community of Malhada da Areia. There, I had the opportunity to see how nature-based solutions, sustainable land and water management practices, and simple technologies are building drought resilience. The community is investing in rainwater harvesting; water reuse systems; and agricultural practices that replenish, rather than deplete, the soils. Across Caatinga, this and dozens of other communities are also fencing selected areas to enable natural regeneration of the native vegetation; keeping the grazing stock within the carrying capacity of their land; and diversifying their sources of income. Each and every one of them shows, with tangible results, that it is very much possible to reset our relationship with the land, and prepare for drought before it strikes. With support from civil society organizations, governmental entities, research institutions, and international partners —with your support— the estimated 38 million Brazilians that live in semiarid lands shall also be able to lay the ground for a more resilient, and prosperous, future. Consider the UNCCD Secretariat your trusted ally. Along with the International Drought Resilience Alliance, to which we are delighted to welcome Brazil. Excellencies, Ladies and gentlemen, from 2 to 13 December, Saudi Arabia will host UNCCD COP16 - the largest and most ambitious global summit on land and drought to date. Together, we will set targets for land degradation neutrality, set up frameworks for drought resilience, strengthen agri-food systems, and work to unlock a multi-billion-dollar land restoration industry.  Where human-made drought says crop failure, we say proactive drought management; where land degradation says migration, we say sustainable land management; where unchecked land conversion says deforestation, we say land use planning; where the lack of prioritization says reactive, we say proactive. In the lead-up to COP16, I count on Brazil’s leadership to help steer our collective boat to a sustainable, and equitable, future for all. Thank you.

The Great Green Wall Observatory, a digital platform that will help track progress of Africa's largest land restoration initiative, was unveiled on 27-29 May following the meeting of 11 participating countries in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. The Observatory was developed by the Great Green Wall Accelerator, hosted by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) as part of its supporting role to the Pan African Agency for the Great Green Wall (PAGGW) and other partners.   The Great Green Wall is an ambitious and transformative Initiative launched by the African Union in 2007 to combat land degradation, desertification, and the negative impacts of climate change in the Sahel region of Africa.   Across the African continent, degrading land jeopardizes farmers' livelihoods and shapes economies heavily reliant on agriculture, compromising public health and education, while also destabilizing regional and global trade, and being a major driver of conflicts and forced migration.   Restoring land is essential for safeguarding ecosystems, driving economic growth, mitigating natural disasters, and enhancing land productivity and food supplies. This is of particular importance in the Sahel, where political and security challenges make progress a matter of urgency. Success in this region offers a model for other areas facing similar challenges, demonstrating that humanity can overcome adversity and promote sustainable development.  The Great Green Wall Accelerator, established in 2021 and hosted by the UNCCD Global Mechanism, was created to strengthen the monitoring of the Initiative's funding and results. The Accelerator has played a pivotal role in enhancing governance, fundraising efforts, and stakeholder engagement across the Initiative.  While ‘commendable progress’ has been made in land restoration and job creation, overcoming challenges in governance, finance and technical support remains critical. Stakeholders are calling for greater clarity and data on progress.   The Great Green Wall Observatory, funded by the Government of Austria through the Austrian Development Agency, is a direct response to this need for the national agencies and the Pan African Agency. Through its creation, UNCCD has supported the development of a comprehensive map of available funds and projects to facilitate access to financial resources.   "The Great Green Wall Observatory, which we have just launched, is a product that we appreciate very much because it has been produced in a very participatory way and it meets the existing needs by allowing us to assess the status of funding and progress in our respective countries.” said Pananditigri Nabasnogo Roch, National Coordinator of Burkina Faso's Great Green Wall for the Sahara and Sahel Initiative.   These data are, for the first time, available online – thus helping ensure transparency and accountability in the implementation of the Great Green Wall Initiative.  “The Great Green Wall remains the beacon of hope for Africa and the world, symbolizing humanity's ability to combat environmental degradation. We call on all stakeholders, partners, and communities to continue their commitment in support of this visionary initiative. Data remains a critical asset to the success of this initiative, and we call on all stakeholders to make use of the Great Green Wall Observatory to contribute relevant data to help accelerate progress,” said UNCCD Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw.   It is important to note that the UNCCD does not provide funding nor implement the Great Green Wall Initiative. Instead, the UNCCD provides critical technical support, encourages private sector participation, and promotes the involvement of civil society and research institutions through national Great Green Wall coalitions.   “Through these actions, the UNCCD aims to support the Great Green Wall Initiative countries and partners in achieving its long-term goals and create a sustainable, resilient future for the people of the Sahel and beyond,” added Thiaw.  About the Great Green Wall Initiative   The Great Green Wall is an African-led movement launched in 2007 by leaders from the Sahelian countries, with an epic ambition to grow an 8,000 km natural wonder of the world across the entire width of Africa. Countries of the initiative include Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan and Chad.  The Initiative aims to regreen the Sahel, restoring degraded lands and providing decent livelihoods as well as jobs and opportunities for millions of people in Africa. It snakes all the way from Senegal in the West to Djibouti in the East. The Great Green Wall aims to restore 100 million hectares of degraded land, sequester 250 million tons of carbon and create 10 million green jobs by 2030.  About the Great Green Wall Accelerator   In 2021, the Great Green Wall Accelerator, hosted by the Global Mechanism of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) was created to monitor funding and results of the GGW Initiative.  The independent review of the Great Green Wall Accelerator is available here.  About the Great Green Wall Observatory  In 2023, Development Gateway, an IREX Venture (DG), was contracted by the UNCCD to develop and roll out the platform as a monitoring evaluation system to inform local, national, and regional programming.   For more information - https://ggwobservatory.org/en  

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) welcomes the G7 Climate, Energy and Environment Ministers Communiqué of 30 April 2024, which underlines the critical importance of addressing land degradation, desertification and soil health as fundamental elements of global sustainability efforts. UNCCD is particularly encouraged by the Italian G7 Presidency's launch of a voluntary Hub on Sustainable Land Use dedicated to promoting a collaborative and common approach to sustainable land use initiatives in Africa and in the Mediterranean Basin in support of achieving land degradation neutrality (LDN). The Hub will focus on sustainable livelihoods, enhancement of food security and promotion of land-based employment, with special regard to communities on the frontlines of land degradation, including Indigenous Peoples, youth and women. The UNCCD commends the G7 for its commitment to immediate and tangible action, such as proposals to increase funding for sustainable land management by 40 per cent over the next decade and to advance scientific research on soil health. These initiatives are critical to addressing these crises and underscore the need for global cooperation and leadership in this crucial decade. "Integrating land and soil health into broader economic and social systems provides a pathway to sustainable, inclusive growth that leaves no one behind. This approach is essential to building resilience to the impacts of climate change and ensuring the health and productivity of the land on which all life depends,” said UNCCD Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw. “The G7's recognition of land degradation and desertification as both environmental and socio-economic challenges dovetails seamlessly with the goals of the UNCCD. Our collaborative approach is critical to scaling up efforts to significantly reduce land degradation, with the goal of a 50 per cent reduction by 2040, as outlined in the G20 Global Land Initiative,” he added. Furthermore, G7's strong emphasis on the interlinked crises of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, which have significant impacts on land and soil, is a decisive step forward ahead of the meetings of the Conferences of the Parties (COPs) to the three Rio Conventions later this year, notably UNCCD COP16 to be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from 2-13 December. “Welcoming the G7's vision, the UNCCD calls on all nations to strengthen their commitment to land health as an integral part of their environment and development agendas. UNCCD looks forward to further collaboration with the G7 and other international partners. Together, we want to implement the ambitious agendas set out in this Communiqué and ensure that land remains a cornerstone of global efforts to combat environmental degradation and promote sustainable development,” Thiaw concluded.