UNCCD COP17: Strengthening Global Drought Resilience and Land Restoration

Context

The 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) concluded in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, under the theme “Restoring Land, Restoring Hope.” The summit placed rangeland protection, drought resilience, sustainable financing and community-led restoration at the centre of global discussions, even as negotiations on a legally binding global drought treaty remained unresolved.

UNCCD and the Significance of COP17

The UNCCD, established in the aftermath of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, is the only legally binding global environmental agreement specifically linking land management with sustainable development. COP17 was particularly significant as it coincided with the UN International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists, bringing pastoral communities and open natural ecosystems into sharper focus.

Land degradation has become a major global concern, with around 40% of the world’s land surface degraded, affecting livelihoods and putting pressure on food and water security.

Major Outcomes of COP17

• Drought resilience received greater institutional focus: Parties agreed that drought would become a permanent standalone agenda item from COP18, replacing its earlier treatment largely through ad-hoc discussions.
• AI-enabled drought assessment: An AI-powered Drought Resilience Index was introduced to assess national preparedness through vulnerability mapping and help countries move from crisis response towards anticipatory drought management.
• New financing mechanism: The Drought Resilience Investment Facility, launched with Luxembourg, seeks to use public funds to reduce investment risks and attract private capital towards water security and climate-resilient agriculture.
• Additional financial commitments: Around $1.3 billion in new and pipeline financing was announced for ecosystem restoration and drought resilience in vulnerable developing countries.
• Global drought treaty remains unresolved: Negotiations failed to produce consensus on a legally binding drought agreement. This is significant given the estimated $278 billion annual financing gap for drought resilience.
• Mongolia’s restoration efforts: With degradation affecting a substantial part of its territory, Mongolia highlighted its Billion Trees Campaign, launched in 2021 with a target of planting one billion trees by 2030.

India’s Role and Key Interventions

India used COP17 to emphasise that land restoration must go beyond conventional afforestation and include grasslands, deserts, pastoral landscapes and other open ecosystems.

Conservation of Open Natural Ecosystems

India released its first dedicated guide on Grasslands and Open Natural Ecosystems (ONEs), covering landscapes such as:

• Ravines
• Thar and other arid deserts
• Cold deserts
• Deccan savannahs

The approach recognises that naturally open landscapes have their own ecological value and should not automatically be converted into tree plantations.

Progress on Land Restoration

India reported that 21.76 million hectares of degraded and deforested land had been brought under active restoration. This contributes towards its commitment to restore 26 million hectares by 2030, including under the Bonn Challenge framework.

Role of Pastoral Communities

India highlighted pastoralists as important custodians of fragile ecosystems. Traditional systems such as the Orans of Rajasthan demonstrate how community institutions can contribute to biodiversity conservation and sustainable management of commons.

Climate Finance

India reiterated the need for adequate, predictable and sustained international climate finance, while pointing to domestic instruments such as Sovereign Green Bonds and the Green Credit Programme.

India’s Domestic Measures

India has developed several programmes addressing land degradation, water stress and desertification:

• National Action Plan to Combat Desertification (NAPCD): First formulated in 2001 and updated in 2023, it provides an umbrella framework for coordinating land-restoration initiatives.
• PM Krishi Sinchayee Yojana – Watershed Component: Promotes ridge-to-valley watershed development, rainwater harvesting and moisture conservation.
• ISRO’s Desertification and Land Degradation Atlas: Uses remote sensing and GIS technologies to identify and monitor changes in land degradation.
• Aravalli Green Wall Project: Seeks to restore degraded landscapes and strengthen an ecological corridor across parts of Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat and Delhi.
• Mission Amrit Sarovar: Focuses on creating and rejuvenating water bodies to improve groundwater recharge and local water availability.
• Soil Health Card Scheme: Helps farmers understand soil nutrient conditions and improve fertiliser use, thereby reducing the risk of long-term soil degradation.

Major Challenges

1. Persistent Financing Gap

The huge annual requirement for drought resilience, particularly in developing countries, continues to exceed available resources.

2. Lack of Global Consensus

Differences between developed and developing countries, particularly over financial responsibilities and binding commitments, continue to obstruct a global drought treaty.

3. Risks from Conventional Afforestation

Planting trees indiscriminately in naturally open grasslands and shrublands can disrupt local hydrology, biodiversity and pastoral livelihoods. Land restoration therefore cannot be equated simply with increasing tree cover.

4. Reactive Approach to Drought

Many drought-response systems continue to rely heavily on compensation and relief after losses occur rather than investing sufficiently in early warning, preparedness and anticipatory action.

Way Forward

• Promote agro-ecological planning: Agricultural subsidies, irrigation policies and MSP incentives should be better aligned with local climatic and ecological conditions to discourage unsuitable water-intensive crops in drought-prone regions.
• Scale forecast-based financing: Satellite observations, soil-moisture data and weather forecasts can be linked with predefined financial triggers so that funds reach vulnerable communities before severe crop losses occur.
• Secure community commons: Pastoral migration routes, grazing lands and traditional conservation areas should receive stronger recognition within land and revenue records.
• Shift towards proactive water management: Micro-irrigation, decentralized rainwater harvesting, watershed restoration and improvement of soil organic carbon can strengthen agricultural resilience.
• Adopt landscape-specific restoration: Restoration strategies should distinguish between forests, grasslands, savannahs, deserts and pastoral ecosystems instead of applying a uniform tree-planting model.

Conclusion

UNCCD COP17 demonstrates that tackling desertification requires more than restoring degraded land after damage has occurred. Early warning systems, innovative finance, ecological restoration and community stewardship must operate together. For India, protecting open natural ecosystems while combining modern scientific tools with traditional custodianship can strengthen drought resilience and support its objective of achieving Land Degradation Neutrality by 2030.

Source : UNCCD