UN Desertification Summit Starts Allocating $12 Billion to 74 Countries as Heat Threatens Food Security
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 17
UN Desertification Summit Starts Allocating $12 Billion to 74 Countries as Heat Threatens Food Security
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 17
Summary
$12 billion pledged over seven years is set to be turned into projects for 74 drought-hit countries as Cop17 opens in Ulaanbaatar, shifting the UN desertification process from promises to implementation.
Record heat, wildfires and a developing super El Niño have raised the stakes, with the World Food Programme warning 50 million more people could be pushed into hunger as harvests suffer.
The talks center on operationalizing the Riyadh Global Drought Resilience Partnership, with more than 70 countries having already submitted drought-management plans for irrigation, crop resilience and water storage.
The funding remains far short of need: UNCCD estimates $2.6 trillion is required by 2030 to restore degraded land, halt desertification and strengthen drought protection.
Saudi Arabia has emerged as a key backer of the once-overlooked treaty, while the UN is also pressing food, textile and other private-sector companies to add financing.