17 June 2011, 06:00 a.m.

Theme 2011

World Day to combat Desertification has taken as its theme “Forests keep drylands working”. Combined with the UN declaration of 2011 as the International Year on Forests, the global problem of land degradation of the drylands, an be addressed on 2 fronts. As Mr Luc Gnacadja, Executive Secretary of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification rightly declared: “Forests are the first step towards healing the drylands and protecting them from desertification and drought”. Forests may become the single most important element of the future sustainability of the drylands as the impacts of climate change worsen.

Aim

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message on World Desertification Day on 17 June 2011 highlights this: “The management, conservation and sustainable development of dry forests are central to combating desertification. The ongoing greening of the Sahel and other success stories around the world show that degraded lands can be reclaimed by agroforestry and other sustainable practices. We need to scale up these interventions and disseminate their results widely."

The day helps promote need for increased public and policy makers’ awareness against the multiple dangers of desertification, land degradation and drought, and events are organized to inspire civilians to undertake at least one action to help minimize the threat. Desertification holds serious implications for the African continent and multiple efforts to implement eco-safety, eradicate poverty, increase socio-economic stability and promote sustainable development; people are literally forced to become environmental refugees. The impact of desertification forces them to move away from their original homes.

Fast Facts

Across Africa, drylands vulnerable to, or affected by desertification, occupy about 43% of the region. By 2009 the estimated amount of people displaced as a result of the environment, was between 17 and 24 million; it is projected that by 2050 that figure will rise to 200 million people. Two thirds of arable land is expected to be lost in Africa by 2025. Land degradation currently leads to the loss of 3% of agriculture gross domestic product annually in sub-Saharan Africa. More than half of the cultivated agricultural area in Africa could be unusable by the year 2050 and the region may be able to feed just 25% of its population by 2025.

Background

In 1994, the United Nations General Assembly declared June 17 the “World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought” to promote public awareness of the issue, and the implementation of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in those countries experiencing serious drought and/or desertification, particularly in Africa.