International Drought Resilience Alliance
No country is immune to drought and its impacts on food, water, and energy security, forced migration and natural resource conflicts. Europe, the western United States, Chile, Australia, and the Horn of Africa have all suffered extreme droughts in recent years. These unprecedented droughts have far-reaching impacts on agriculture, energy, transportation, tourism, and human health.
From 1998 to 2017, drought generated economic losses of about US$124 billion across the world, not to mention the cost in human suffering and lives.
Drought frequency, severity, and duration are projected to increase in the short term due to climate change, which is expected to cause to a large displacement of people from affected areas in the long run.
The overwhelming evidence points to the need to shift from crises management to drought preparedness and adaptation measures that significantly reduce vulnerability and exposure at all levels. World leaders recognize the need for a global collaborative platform, with political engagement at the highest level and a network of implementing partners to support countries and communities considering their different circumstances.
Responding to these needs, the International Drought Resilience Alliance was first announced by Spain at the 77th session of the UN General Assembly in September 2022 to be officially launched at the UNFCCC COP27 in November 2022. The alliance is jointly convened by President of Senegal Macky Sall and President of the Government of Spain Pedro Sánchez. Interested members of the Alliance see the urgent need to pivot from emergency response to increasing drought resilience through a more coordinated and effective response.
When: 08 - 22 September 2026
Where: New York
Under the topic "Localizing the SDGs", the tightly-first session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 81) will open on Tuesday, 8 September 2026. The first day of the high-level General Debate will be Tuesday, 22 September 2026.
When: 19 - 30 October 2026
Where: Yerevan
The Conference of the Parties is the governing body of the Convention and advances implementation of the Convention through the decisions it takes at its periodic meetings. The COP17 slogan "Taking action for nature" conveys aspirations for an action-oriented conference where the Parties to the CBD will undertake the first global review of collective progress in the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. The global review is expected to guide accelerated implementation to embrace harmony with nature, transformative change and engagement from a wide range of actors: national governments, civil society, youth, businesses, local governing bodies and communities.