Prioritizing people in land restoration and drought recovery efforts

The Vietnamese delegation, led by Mr. Tran Quang Bao, Director General of the Forestry Administration, recently participated in the 16th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (COP 16) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, held from December 2-13.

COP 16, themed “Our Land - Our Future,” adopts a people-centered approach and is expected to become a significant milestone and breakthrough moment in land and drought resilience.

The event also marks the 30th anniversary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and is the largest UN conference on land to date. It aims to raise global ambitions and accelerate actions among stakeholders.

In his opening remarks, Mr. Ibrahim Thiaw, UNCCD Executive Secretary, highlighted that land and drought issues are central to many critical discussions, not only at the United Nations General Assembly but also within the G20, G7, BRICS, and the World Economic Forum.

This is an opportunity to raise awareness and enhance activities around land restoration while making it an effective tool to address major global challenges such as climate change, food insecurity, economic inequality, forced migration, and even global instability.

The UNCCD Executive Secretary expressed hope that land restoration will be recognized as an effort not only to protect the environment but also to safeguard economies, security, and humanity as a whole.

Mrs. Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, emphasized that 40% of the world's land area is degraded and called on COP 16 to prioritize strengthening international cooperation to reverse land degradation.

Additionally, she urged efforts to restore degraded lands, enhance restoration initiatives to promote sustainable development, and prioritize financial investment in combating drought and desertification.

Representatives from regions, countries participating in UNCCD, and international organizations also highlighted the importance of protecting and restoring land productivity. They stressed the necessity of enhancing international cooperation, knowledge and technology transfer, and financial support for developing countries to improve their resilience to drought and land degradation.

Within the framework of COP 16, Mr. Tran Quang Bao, Head of the Vietnamese delegation, met with Mrs. Mira Lee, Deputy Minister of the Korea Forest Service, to discuss and promote mutual cooperation in reforestation, biodiversity conservation, and other forestry-related activities.

The Vietnamese delegation also engaged in various side activities, exchanging experiences with relevant partners on solutions to promote sustainable use of agricultural and forestry land to combat desertification, land degradation, and drought.

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is the only legally binding framework established to mitigate the impact of land degradation, protect land, and address desertification and drought. The Convention has 197 parties, including 196 countries and the European Union (EU).

The Convention calls for collaboration among governments, scientists, policymakers, the private sector, and communities to achieve a shared vision of restoring and managing the world's land.

The UNCCD serves as a global voice on land issues and is one of the three main United Nations treaties (Rio Conventions), alongside the Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Convention on Biological Diversity.

The year 2024 marks the 30th anniversary of the UNCCD's establishment and the first time COP is hosted in the Middle East and North Africa region, which directly witnesses and suffers from the impacts of desertification, land degradation, and drought.