Olusegun Ariyo
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Addressing global loss of fertile lands and escalating droughts will be the focus of the 23rd session of the Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention (CRIC23), as 197 Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) convene in Panama this week.The meeting comes at a crucial moment. If current trends continue, land almost the size of South America (16 million square kilometres) will show continued degradation by 2050, just as the global demand for food, water and energy continues to soar. Meanwhile, two-thirds of the planet has become permanently drier in the last three decades, and the past two years have seen the most widespread and damaging droughts in recorded history. In Panama, drought disrupted traffic through the Canal, significantly impacting global trade.UNCCD Executive Secretary, Yasmine Fouad, said: “The resilience of our communities, economies and ecosystems depends on healthy land. Yet, we continue to degrade an area the size of Egypt every year, eroding the land’s ability to produce food, store water, support biodiversity and shield people from droughts, floods and sand and dust storms. Investing in sustainable land management, land restoration and nature-based solutions is not only an environmental necessity; it is a development imperative and a strategic investment in stability, prosperity and peace.”“CRIC23 is a key moment to assess our collective progress, strengthen the bridge between Riyadh and Ulaanbaatar, and recognise land and drought resilience as the red thread connecting the Rio Conventions. Together, we can accelerate the shift toward a more resilient, food-secure and nature-positive future.”From Riyadh to UlaanbaatarCRIC23 will review progress in implementing decisions taken at the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP16) to UNCCD in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in December 2024 and discuss the Convention’s post-2030 roadmap. Osama Faqeeha, Deputy Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, UNCCD COP16 Presidency, said: “In Riyadh, world leaders established new priorities for land and drought action. One year on, this meeting is a crucial opportunity to accelerate the translation of COP16 decisions into concrete policies and practices and to advance the Convention’s agenda. Sustainable land management and drought resilience cannot wait: we depend on them to ensure food, water and energy security, as the world will need to produce 50 per cent more food by 2050.”The meeting will hold thematic sessions on land tenure as the basis for investments in healthy land; discuss the growing threat of sand and dust storms; and host the second Gender Caucus to give a voice to women, who are disproportionately affected by land degradation and drought, while supporting the livelihoods of entire communities around the world.Parties will also engage with other key stakeholders, including youth, Indigenous Peoples and local communities, and see the launch of new reports on Small Island Developing States and rangelands.In addition, the first of three informal and voluntary dialogues on drought resilience will be convened alongside CRIC23, building on the outcomes of COP16 and preparing for the resumption of negotiations at COP17. Led by the COP16 Presidency, the Tafa’ul Process is inspired by the Arabic word تَفَاؤُل (Tafa’ul), meaning constructive optimism and hopeful determination. CRIC23 recommendations will inform decision-making by the Convention’s 196 country Parties and the European Union ahead of the next UNCCD COP17, which will take place in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, in August 2026.Mr. Batmunkh Dondovdorj, Special Advisor to the Minister and Chairman of the upcoming COP17 Presidency National Office, stressed that the road from Riyadh to Ulaanbaatar must be a road of hope for communities and ecosystems that have long been undervalued. COP17 will coincide with the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists, offering a unique political moment to highlight rangelands, which are disappearing faster than rainforests.“The meeting in Panama is crucial to set the basis for a successful COP17, which will bring to the fore the links between human wellbeing and healthy, productive and resilient landscapes,” said Dondovdorj. “That is particularly true for rangelands, which cover around half of the planet’s land area and are Home to two billion people, but is often treated as empty, expendable spaces. For Mongolia – a country whose history, culture and economy are deeply rooted in pastoralism – this is not an abstract issue. It is about dignity, identity and opportunity for people who have been overlooked for far too long.”Panama’s Nature PledgeToday, Panama highlighted the centrality of land in its Nature Pledge, a roadmap that unifies national efforts to tackle land degradation, biodiversity loss and climate change to leverage the synergies between the three Rio Conventions and advance all of their interconnected goals, faster.As part of its Nature Pledge, Panama plans to restore 100,000 hectares of degraded land by 2035. Juan Carlos Navarro, Minister of Environment of Panama, declared: “Nature is the backbone of the global economy. The Panama Nature Pledge shows our commitment to restoring critical watersheds, protecting forests, and incentivising sustainable agricultural practices as a means to build the resilience of our economy and our communities. The Panama Natural Fund, in turn, guarantees long-term conservation actions across the territory. There is no time to lose: We must urgently take care of nature, so nature can continue taking care of us.” A signatory to UNCCD since 1996, Panama has committed to achieving Land Degradation Neutrality by 2030, identified 31 critical hotspots, and is advancing reforestation and Dry Corridor adaptation programmes – underlining its role as CRIC23 host. This year, Panama became the first country to host meetings of all three Rio Conventions.
