Earth Negotiations Bulletin coverage of UNCCD COP 15 in Côte d'Ivoire, where global leaders are uniting to find scalable solutions to desertification, land degradation, and drought. Earth Negotiations Bulletin coverage of UNCCD COP 15 in Côte d'Ivoire, where global leaders are uniting to find scalable solutions to desertification, land degradation, and drought. View our latest highlights and images or our latest daily report in English ou en français to keep up with negotiations—or subscribe to receive our reports in your inbox.
The fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP 15) will bring together leaders from governments, the private sector, civil society, and other key stakeholders to drive progress in the sustainable management of land—the bedrock of a healthy, productive planet.

Convening under the theme “Land, Life, Legacy: From scarcity to prosperity,” COP 15 marks a key moment in the fight against desertification, land degradation, and drought. It will build on the findings of the second edition of the Global Land Outlook and offer a concrete response to the interconnected challenges of land degradation, climate change, and biodiversity loss.

Top items on COP 15’s agenda include drought, land restoration, and related enablers such as land rights, gender equality and youth empowerment. COP 15 will also consider:

links between land and other key sustainability issues;
the recommendations of the intergovernmental working group who was created during COP 14 to consider effective policy and implementation measures of a drought policy framework;
progress made in the work programmes of new themes agreed at COP 13, such as land tenure, as well as the implementation of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030); and
its budget and work programme.

The COP was established by the Convention as its main decision-making body. It is made up of governments and the European Union and is responsible for guiding the Convention so that it can respond to global challenges and national needs. The COP is mandated to review reports submitted by the parties detailing how they are carrying out their land degradation neutrality commitments and make recommendations on the basis of these reports. It also has the power to amend the Convention or to adopt new annexes. The COP has been meeting biennially since 2001.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, COP 15 was postponed from its intended dates in September 2021. Instead, the 2nd Extraordinary Session of the UNCCD COP gathered participants in a special virtual session during December 2021 where the interim programme and budget was adopted in preparation for COP 15. This decision allowed the continuation of the Convention and its Secretariat.

UNCCD COP 15 will meet in person (with virtual streaming of all official sessions) in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, from 9 to 20 May 2022. A high-level segment will take place on 9-10 May 2022, including a Heads of States Summit, high-level roundtables and interactive dialogue sessions, as well as numerous other special and side events.