Indian Ocean islands join efforts to achieve LDN

Ebène, Mauritius – Recognizing the urgent need to address pressing environmental challenges, the representatives of the Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius and the Seychelles gathered for a workshop on 21-22 November 2018 to develop a joint game plan to increase the resilience to natural disasters and ensure food security. The participating Indian Ocean nations have already committed to achieving land degradation neutrality (LDN) and take bold steps to avoid, reduce and reverse land degradation by combating deforestation, soil erosion and soil sealing.

Together, the workshop participants have developed steps to sustainably manage the impact of urban agglomerations on the islands’ landscape, reduce the pressure on forest ecosystems by upscaling sustainable agriculture practices and mainstream LDN principles into land use planning. 

The workshop, hosted by the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) secretariat and co-organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD, has also given momentum to the “Neutral Island Initiative” (Neutral-is), which will address the land–water–ocean nexus when building resilience and food security in the region.

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• Achieving land degradation neutrality
• Land and SDGs
• Land and climate change