UN Entities
- Secretariat of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD):
https://www.unccd.int/
UN Treaties and Declarations
- United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa:
https://www.unccd.int/convention/about-convention - Sustainable Development Goal 15: Sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and reverse land degradation, halt biodiversity loss
http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/biodiversity/
https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal15
https://sdgs.un.org/topics/desertification-land-degradation-and-drought
UN Conferences and Observances
- Sixteenth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP16), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 2 to 13 December 2024: https://www.unccd.int/cop16
- Fifteenth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP15), Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, 9 to 20 May 2022: https://www.unccd.int/cop15
- World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought – 17 June
https://www.un.org/en/observances/desertification-day
https://www.unccd.int/news-stories/press-releases/germany-host-2024-desertification-and-drought-day-bonn
https://www.unesco.org/en/days/desertification-drought-combat - International Day of Combating Sand and Dust Storms – 12 July
https://www.un.org/en/observances/day-of-combating-sand-and-dust-storms - High-Level Dialogue on Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought, 14 June 2021
https://www.un.org/pga/75/event/high-level-dialogue-on-desertification-land-degradation-and-drought/ - United Nations Decade for Deserts and the Fight against Desertification 2010-2020
http://www.un.org/en/events/desertification_decade/
https://www.unccd.int/events/un-decade-deserts-and-fight-against-desertification - General Assembly High-level Meeting High-level Meeting on Desertification,
20 September 2011
http://www.un.org/en/ga/desertification2011/ - International Year of Deserts and Desertification, 2006
http://www.iydd.org/
Selected Statements and Speeches of UN Officials
- Increase cooperation, commit to practical action towards limiting sand, dust storms, Secretary-General stresses in conference message (SG/SM/21930, 9 September 2023): https://press.un.org/en/2023/sgsm21930.doc.htm
- Women restore, protect land, Secretary-General stresses on World Day to Combat Desertification, Drought, urging equal right, elimination of legal barriers (SG/SM/21827,
9 June 2023): https://press.un.org/en/2023/sgsm21827.doc.htm - Taking caring of ‘our land, its biodiversity’ can help address climate crisis, Secretary-General says in Message for Day to Combat Desertification, Drought (SG/SM/21325, 16 June 2022): https://press.un.org/en/2022/sgsm21325.doc.htm
- Build on existing frameworks to improve women’s lives, Deputy Secretary-General tells High-Level Gender Caucus at Conference on Desertification (DSG/SM/1739, 9 May 2022): https://press.un.org/en/2022/dsgsm1739.doc.htm
- ‘Business as usual’ not working, Deputy Secretary-General tells Heads of State at Climate Change Conference on Desertification, Land Degradation (DSG/SM/1738, 9 May 2022): https://press.un.org/en/2022/dsgsm1738.doc.htm
- Make healthy land central in all planning, urges Secretary-General, in Message for World Day to Combat Desertification, Drought (SG/SM/20780, 16 June 2021): https://press.un.org/en/2021/sgsm20780.doc.htm
- Simple, unifying act of land restoration will help tackle intersecting planetary crises, Deputy-Secretary-General tells High-Level Dialogue on Desertification (DSG/SM/1598, 14 June 2021): https://press.un.org/en/2021/dsgsm1598.doc.htm
Further information
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
- Action Against Desertification: http://www.fao.org/in-action/action-against-desertification/en/
- Dryland Forestry: http://www.fao.org/dryland-forestry/en/
- UN Development Programme (UNDP) – Nairobi Global Policy Centre on Resilient Ecosystems and Desertification (GC-RED): https://www.undp.org/policy-centre/nairobi
- Global Environment Facility – Land Degradation: http://www.thegef.org/topics/land-degradation
- World Meteorological Organization (WMO) – Drought: https://wmo.int/topics/drought
Selection of Publications available online
- UNCCD Publications: https://www.unccd.int/publications
- Drought in Numbers, 2022 (UNCCD): https://www.unccd.int/resources/publications/drought-numbers
- Global Land Outlook Second Edition: Land Restoration for Recovery and Resilience (UNCCD, April 2022): https://www.unccd.int/resources/global-land-outlook/global-land-outlook-2nd-edition
- Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction: Special Report on Drought 2021 (UNDRR): https://www.undrr.org/gar2021-drought
- Trends in Sustainable Development, 2008-2009: Agriculture, rural development, land, desertification and drought (DESA, 2008): https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/30fullreport.pdf
February 2024
not an official document – for information only
https://unric.org/en/unric-library-backgrounder-desertification/