Ivory Coast’s capital, Abidjan, is home to the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), which opened on Monday and will run until May 20 next.
The COP theme chosen for this year is “Lands. Life. Heritage: From a precarious world to a prosperous future”. In a press release, the UNCCD explains that this theme is “a call to action to ensure that the earth, which is our source of life on this planet, continues to benefit present and future generations”.
Land degradation now affects 40% of the planet’s land, according to the UN Convention. In Africa, the whole horn of the continent is concerned. Experts are unanimous that the consequences of drought for biodiversity and populations are harmful.
“The Conference will pay particular attention to the restoration of one billion hectares of degraded land by 2030, the sustainability of land use in the face of the impacts of climate change and the fight against the increase in disaster risks. such as droughts, sand and dust storms and forest fires”, stresses the UNCCD.
It will discuss the Great Green Wall project, which aims to restore one hundred million hectares of arid lands in Africa by 2030 on a strip of 8,000 km from Senegal to Djibouti.
Nine African heads of state should be present at the conference around their Ivorian counterpart Alassane Ouattara, including the Nigerian Mohamed Bazoum, the Togolese Faure Gnassingbé or the Congolese Felix Tshisekedi.
A youth forum on “The land professions of tomorrow” opened on Sunday May 8 on the sidelines of COP15. On this occasion, the Minister of State, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani indicated, among other things, that « the fields of the fight against desertification and land restoration constitute sources of employment opportunities for young people”.
By OMA Newsletter N° 694 of 09/05/2022
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