UNCCD national reporting process

The national reporting process is a vital tool for the implementation of the Convention, supporting the achievement of strategic objectives at both global and national levels. The data submitted by Parties help guide policy formulation to combat desertification, land degradation, and drought (DLDD), identify the geographical areas most affected, and enable the design and implementation of targeted measures and interventions.

In accordance with Article 26 of the Convention and decisions of its Conference of the Parties (COP), particularly Decision 11/COP.1, Parties to the UNCCD are required to submit reports on actions taken to implement the Convention through the UNCCD secretariat. 

In August 2025, the UNCCD secretariat launched the updated Performance Review and Assessment of Implementation System (PRAIS) for the 2026 national reporting process.

The new PRAIS is more streamlined and user-friendly, featuring a country overview dashboard, expanded user roles, peer-to-peer chat, improved validation tools, flexible data sourcing and clearer reporting obligations. These improvements were developed in response to requests from Parties.

Tentative deadlines for national report submission are:

November 2026 for Strategic Objective 1
February 2027 for the remaining Strategic Objectives

The CRIC Bureau, in consultation with the Executive Secretary, will monitor progress and may adjust these dates if needed.

Technical support will be provided by partner regional institutions, including the International Research Center of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals (CBAS), the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (JRC), the National Center for Vegetation Cover Development and Combating Desertification (NCVC), the Partnership Initiative on Sustainable Land Management (PISLM), the Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD) and the Sahara and Sahel Observatory (OSS). Additional partnerships are being explored, and consultants will fill any remaining support gaps.

To support Parties, the reporting process will be implemented in phases:

Phase 1 (ongoing): PRAIS launch with supporting documentation and online help desk https://support.unccd.int
Phase 2 (December 2025): Training of Trainers in Panama for regional institutions and consultants
Phase 3 (January – April 2026): Regional in-person training for national focal points and reporting officers
Phase 4 (February-March 2026): Release of e-learning video tutorials
Phase 5 (January 2026 – February 2027): Ongoing technical backstopping and quality assurance of national reports before final submission.

After reports are submitted, the CRIC will review and analyze this information at its twenty-fifth session.

Parties are encouraged to start preparations early by accessing enabling environment funds from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), assembling national reporting teams and familiarizing themselves with PRAIS at https://www.unccd.int/resources/prais4-reporting-platform.

Unless otherwise communicated, the reporting officer from the 2022 process will remain in place for 2026. Any changes should be communicated by the National Focal Point to reporting [at] unccd.int (reporting[at]unccd[dot]int).

For assistance, please contact the UNCCD reporting help desk at https://support.unccd.int.