PURPOSE : Drought is one of the most destructive natural disasters in terms of the loss of life arising from impacts, such as widescale crop failure, wildfires and water stress. Exacerbated by land degradation and climate change, droughts are increasing in frequency and severity, up 29% since 2000, with 55 million people affected every year. By 2050, droughts may affect an estimated three-quarters of the world’s population. It’s a global and urgent issue. The World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought is a United Nations observance celebrated each year on 17 June. Its purpose is to raise awareness of the presence of desertification and drought, highlighting methods of preventing desertification and recovering from drought.
FORUM : “United for Land. Our Legacy. Our Future.” International Day to combat Desertification and Drought 2024. This year, the theme will spotlight the future of land stewardship — our most precious resource to ensure the stability and prosperity of billions of people around the world. Healthy land not only provides us with almost 95% of our food but so much more: it clothes and shelters us, provides jobs and livelihoods, and protects us from the worsening droughts, floods and wildfires.Yet, every second, an equivalent of four football fields of healthy land becomes degraded, adding up to a total of 100 million hectares each year. Growing word populations, coupled with unsustainable production and consumption patterns, fuel demand for natural resources, putting excessive pressure on land to the point of degradation. Desertification and drought are driving forced migration, putting tens of millions of people each year at risk of displacement. Of the world’s 8 billion inhabitants, over one billion of young people under the age of 25 years live in developing countries, particularly in regions directly dependent on land and natural resources for sustenance. Creating job prospects for rural populations is a viable solution that gives young people access to eco-entrepreneurship opportunities and at the same time to scale up best practices. Each USD invested in land restoration can yield up to 30 USD in return. Follow the conversation with the hashtags: #DesertificationAndDrought, #Drought, #ourlegacyourfuture, #United4land, #17june, #DesertificationDay.
EVENTS : On June 17th, from 10:00 – 19:00 EDT; A High-level event to mark the International Day to combat Desertification and Drought Day 2024 will be held at UNHQ in New York. The events organized will focus on the transformative power of healthy land for addressing today’s most pressing and interconnected challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss, food and water security – a blueprint for providing future generations with a healthy planet. The Day will amplify a renewed global commitment to sustainable land management and drought resilience. The panel discussions are organized jointly by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), UN Women, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The high-level event will be opened by the President of the 78th General Assembly with the participation by leaders representing governments, international organizations, civil society, Indigenous Peoples, women and youth. It will include interactive dialogues and statements from the floor moderated by UNCCD Executive Secretary Mr. Ibrahim Thiaw.
In Bonn, Germany, from 14:30 – 18:00 GMT; The global observance event at the Bundeskunsthalle, which will mark the 30th anniversary of UNCCD, will bring together world leaders, youth and prominent personalities from academia, civil society, sports and entertainment to showcase a strong ambition to be united for land, ahead of the UNCCD COP16, the largest-ever United Nations conference on land and drought in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in December 2024. The Government of Germany, the Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the City of Bonn will organize a series of public-facing events. A photo exhibition, educational programmes and musical performances, together with a social media campaign launched ahead of the Day, will serve to ensure the global reach of this years' theme. The global observance event on June 17th will be hosted by Germany and will be accessible to online audiences via a livestream.
From 2-13 December 2024 in Riyadh, will be held the UNCCD 16th session of the Conference of the Parties; COP16 will be a landmark event for accelerating action on land and drought resilience and a gamechanger for the green transition in Saudi Arabia, the region and beyond. Learn more about the COP16 Sessions and the side- events. Register to participate!
Worldwide celebrations: View the calendar of upcoming meetings and Explore the map of events!
STATEMENTS
PODCASTS: Talking About the Convention, the UNCCD 2018-2030 Strategic Framework and how to use the Drought Toolbox. Examples of stories and case studies from around the world demonstrate how the recognition of land rights has sparked signifcant investments in long-term land and soil conservation. Listen to the audio-podcasts!
CAMPAIGN MATERIALS: The future of our land is at stake. Desertification, land degradation, and drought are among the most pressing environmental challenges of our time, with up to 40% of all land area worldwide already considered degraded. the UNCCD’s campaign “United for Land. Our Legacy. Our Future.” materials like posters and action toolkit are available; Get the campaign materials!
WHY WE CELEBRATE THE DAY?
The General Assembly established the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the sole legally binding international agreement linking environment and development to sustainable land management, and declared 17 June "World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought" by its resolution A/RES/49/115.
Droughts have always been a part of nature and the human experience but are now much worse largely due to human activity. Hardly any country is immune to drought, but all countries can prepare better to tackle drought effectively. Drought is daunting, as its effects on people’s lives and livelihoods are devastating. But through ingenuity, commitment and solidarity, it can be addressed successfully. Tools are available to assess drought risk. Solutions exist to ensure lives and livelihoods are no longer lost to drought.
In 2007, the UN General Assembly declared 2010-2020 as United Nations Decade for Deserts and the fight against Desertification to mobilize global action to fight land degradation, led again by the UNCCD Secretariat.
UNCCD's 197 parties (169 affected by desertification) work together to maintain and restore land and soil productivity, and to mitigate the effects of drought in drylands — the arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas, where some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and peoples can be found.
Since 2017, the UNCCD and its partners supported about 70 drought-prone countries to develop national action plans to reduce drought disasters.
ACTIONS
Action can be taken at all levels, from citizens, businesses, governments and UN partners, everyone can come on board and lend a helping hand to rise up from drought together. Everyone can participate in actions that increase our collective resilience because every action counts.
As an individual, engage in the #Droughtland Campaign. Share, expand and grow your influence on- and off-line to promote sound water management and drought impact mitigation
Support communities to tackle drought head on. No amount of early warning will work without action to protect the most vulnerable
Set up drought insurance programmes; establish food banks; build capacity and campaign for water-efficient food production.
Regenerate your land. If it is healthy, land is natural storage for fresh water. If it is degraded, it is not. Plant and consume drought-tolerant crops. Irrigate efficiently. Recycle and reuse of water. Reduce water evaporation and soil erosion. Mix food sources.
Engage with schools. Educate, communicate and activate through children and the youth. Investigate and disseminate practical drought resilience ideas and inform local communities about the most appropriate actions for their soil and land types for instance.
Invest in projects that promote solar-powered water pumps and rainwater harvesting for drought-prone communities.
Share your Stories about drought risks and resilience with the world.
PARTNERSHIPS
The World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought is hosted by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA); The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD); The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP); The UNDP-Global Policy Centre on Resilient Ecosystems and Desertification; The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO); The International Food and Research Development (IFAD).
The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) will reaffirm its commitment to gender equality with these objectives:
Raise awareness of the disproportionate impact of desertification, land degradation and drought on women and girls and the barriers they face in decision-making on land issues;
Highlight women’s contributions to sustainable land management and broader SDGs;
Mobilize global support to advance land rights for women and girls around the world.
The UNCCD is therefore calling on all members of the global community to treat the land as a limited and precious natural capital, prioritize its health in the pandemic recovery and push hard to restore the land during the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. Everyone has a role to play because everyone has a stake in the future.