The Convention recognizes the importance of women in the implementation of the Convention, and identifies critical areas for their engagement: (i) awareness-raising, and participation in the design and implementation of programmes; (ii) decision-making processes that men and women adopt at the local level in the governance of development, implementation and review of regional and national action programmes (RAPs and NAPs); and (iii) capacity-building, education and public awareness, particularly at local level through the support of local organizations.

The adoption, in September 2017, of a Gender Action Plan to accompany implementation of the UNCCD 2018-2030 Strategic Framework enhances the implementation of the Convention, making it a more powerful and strategic instrument for transforming the livelihoods of millions of families. Today, 113 of the 169 countries affected by land degradation and/or drought have joined the movement to restore degrading land. They include the world’s poorest countries, where a substantial percentage of the extremely land-dependent poor are women.