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​New York, United States, 11 October 2010 – UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has re-appointed Mr Luc Gnacadja as the Executive Secretary of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification for another three year-term, with effect from 1 October 2010. “It is indeed a privilege granted to me and a responsibility to further advance our collective endeavors to service the Parties to the UNCCD in speeding up the effective implementation of the ten-year Strategy, “ Mr. Gnacadja responded on learning of his reappointment. “A lot has been achieved but there is a lot more to do in the months and years to come to meet the Strategy’s expected outcomes,” he added. “Desertification has far-reaching consequences and impacts” Mr. Gnacadja said, stressing that the mainstreaming of desertification and drought issues into the policy framework at all levels is still the major hurdle to the implementation of the UNCCD. Since the Parties have agreed in 2009 on the way to measure the progress in implementation, the next major milestone is to the move towards target setting at all levels that will trigger action, cooperation and effective partnerships to improve the livelihoods of the affected populations and the conditions of their ecosystems, he said. In that regard, Mr. Gnacadja asserted, a comprehensive assessment of the cost of inaction will be crucial. In his first three-year term, Mr. Gnacadja has already made his mark by steering the secretariat in the implementation of the Convention’s first 10-year Strategy approved by the parties in September 2007. During his tenure, the UNCCD process moved to the “realm of measurability” with the adoption of the performance and impact indicators to assess and monitor the implementation of the Convention. Also, the Global Environment Facility, the largest multilateral environment fund, amended its Charter to include the financing of country activities related to the Convention. Mr. Gnacadja is credited with increasing global policy attention to the plight of the drylands, the threat desertification poses to global human well-being and the latent potential in the drylands to contribute to global sustainability. Mr. Gnacadja was appointed Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of the UNCCD in September 2007. An architect by profession and a native of Benin in West Africa, he served as Benin’s Minister of Environment, Housing and Urban Development from 1999 to 2005 and received the World’ Bank’s “2002 Green Award” in March 2003. About the UNCCD Established in 1994, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is the sole legally biding international agreement linking environment, development and the promotion of healthy soils. The Convention’s 194 signatory Parties (193 countries and the European Union), work to alleviate poverty in the drylands, maintain and restore the land’s productivity and mitigate the effects of drought. For more information, contact: Wagaki Mwangi Public Information and Media Officer, UNCCD Email: wmwangi@unccd.int Tel: +49 228 815 2820 Internet: www.unccd.int

The Ministerial Global Forum on Food and Agriculture, hosted by Germany, concluded today with a call from 68 nations across the globe to prevent and reverse soil degradation. While 90 per cent of our food production depend on soil, which is also one of the earth’s most important carbon sinks, its quality is increasingly deteriorating, and fertile land is becoming more scarce. To stop this trend, countries must unite in their efforts to bring life back to degraded soils. Recognizing that land degradation and drought destroy the soil quality and threaten global food security, the communiqué issued at the closing of the Forum urges the countries to combat desertification and restore degraded land to achieve a land degradation-neutral world by 2030. The communiqué specifically notes the crucial role of land-restoration initiatives such as the Great Green Wall of Africa for political and social stability. UNCCD Executive Secretary Mr. Ibrahim Thiaw, who moderated one of the Forum's sessions, expressed the convention's strong commitment to supporting countries in making the spirit of the communiqué a reality and shaping ambitious long-terms goals on soil restoration at the upcoming UNCCD COP15 in Abidjan, Côte D’Ivoire, in May 2022.  "The decisions taken at our next Conference of the Parties will ramp up response actions of countries that have committed to achieve Land Degradation Neutrality for a sustainable and resilient future.​​​​​" — UNCCD Executive Secretary Mr. Ibrahim Thiaw While the global extent of land degradation is estimated at between 20-40 per cent of the total land area, restoring degraded land has been proven as an efficient and cost-effective solution to reverse degradation, climate change and biodiversity loss and to reduce the risk and intensity of disasters. Moreover, our food systems can be redesigned to ensure positive outcomes for nature and climate. Shifting from inefficient, resource-intensive production models to conservation and regenerative agriculture, agroforestry and other integrated systems, we can rebuild healthy and resilient food systems and restore degraded soils. Read more: Full communiqué UNCCD COP15 Sustainable food systems

The UN Food Systems Summit will be held during the UN General Assembly in New York on 23 September 2021. It is expected to set the stage for global food systems transformation to accelerate action towards the Sustainable Development Goals. The Summit aims to raise global awareness and shape global commitments that can transform food systems to eliminate hunger, reduce diet-related diseases, and restore planetary health. As the UN Anchor Agency for Action Track 3 – “Boosting nature-positive food production” – the UNCCD has prepared a series of Action Guides on priority issues for the UN Food Systems Summit: Nature-positive food production Restoring soil health Managing drought and water scarcity Livestock management Gender equality Youth engagement The goal of Action Track 3 is to boost nature-positive food production at the scale needed to meet the fundamental human right to healthy and nutritious food while at the same time restoring balance with nature. This series of Action Guides introduces agroecological approaches and regenerative practices that make food production systems more inclusive, sustainable, and resilient. The strategies and actions presented in these Action Guides are evidence-based, proven to be effective, and can be adapted in a variety of diverse settings. Each Action Guide focuses on key elements that influence the social, economic, and environmental dimensions of food production: soil, gender, tenure, youth, drought and water scarcity, livestock and pastoralism, among others. Collectively, the series offers a systems perspective to guide regenerative actions for both small and large producers to promote nature-positive transformation. Read more: Restoration. Land. Recovery