Multiple
Blue-Prints for Better Managed Drylands
and Improved Livelihoods from UNEP-GEF Project
Nairobi, 17 June 2009
- Improved varieties of the tropical, nutritious
'Sahel Apple' tree allied to the setting
up of market gardens and community nature
reserves are helping to turn the tide of
land-degradation and desertification in
some African countries, a new study shows.
In other countries on
the Continent, communities are testing the
re-introduction of extinct grass species,
the deployment of rainwater harvesting,
rotational grazing and the simple anti-erosion
techniques as anti-desertification strategies.
The promising techniques
have emerged from the US$10 million Desert
Margins Programme (DMP) led by the UN Environment
Programme (UNEP) in partnership with the
International Crops Research Institute for
Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) and with support
from the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary
General and UNEP Executive Director, said:
"Land degradation threatens nearly
a billion people in some 100 countries and
it is estimated that around a third of the
world's lands are experiencing desertification.
There are many factors at work including
climate change. Thus governments need to
Seal the Deal on a serious and far-reaching
new agreement at the crucial UN climate
convention meeting in Copenhagen in just
172 days time".
"But land degradation
and desertification is not inevitable and
the multiple inspiring solutions from the
Deserts Margin Programme underscore this.
It is time to scale-up and to replicate
these kinds of actions in order to climate-proof
vulnerable communities while boosting livelihoods,
biodiversity and water supplies en route
to achieving the UN's poverty-related Millennium
Development Goals," he added.
The success of the project
is highlighted in a number of pilot projects
in nine African countries. Some of the countries
are the following;
Senegal
Here land degradation
constitutes a major problem for agricultural
production, particularly in the areas on
the edge of the desert.
The Sahel Apple introduced
by the DPM is a fruit tree that has the
potential to provide nutritious fruit with
a high-market value and at the same time
restores degraded lands.
Kenya
This country's rangelands
are characterized by low and erratic rainfall,
prolonged dry periods and frequent droughts.
Indeed the problem of desertification and
land degradation is serious as over 80%
of the country's total land area is categorized
as arid and semi-arid.
According to the report,
the project introduced new technologies
into the area for improving soil moisture,
bush management and constructing terraces
which are now contributing to a successful
revegetation of denuded ranges.
Zimbabwe
Mtobo in the Matebeland
South province is one of the driest areas
in the country. It was facing the disappearance
of vast areas of forests due to frequent
bush fires, massive tree cutting for curios
and the disappearance of key species of
trees and animals. Land pressure was also
causing households to settle in grazing
areas.
The project has catalyzed
the reintroduction of extinct grass and
tree species, enrichment of woodland areas
and an incentive by the community to manage
the woodlands more effectively.
Today, on the Day to
Combat Desertification, the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP) is calling
on the global community to accelerate efforts
to combat desertification and the effects
of drought and seek solutions like those
tested under the Desert Margins Project.
An evolution of the
global carbon markets also opens the door
to paying farmers and land owners for climate-friendly
farming techniques.
UNEP and partners with
funding from the Global Environment Facility,
have just launched the Climate Benefits
Project that will be estimating the amounts
of carbon that can be stored in soils and
vegetation under different management regimes.
Communities in Western
Kenya alongside ones in Niger, Nigeria and
China are pioneering the work.
Drivers of Land Degradation
and Desertification
Poverty and the challenge
of feeding a population of six billion people,
which has almost doubled in the past four
decades, are part of the pressures driving
the loss of vegetation and soil fertility.
While true deserts grow
and shrink naturally, it is the drylands
which make up 40 percent of the Earth's
land surface that suffering desertification
as a result of unsustainable use of land
and water in too many places.
These drylands, which
include the real deserts, savannahs and
tropical dry forests are dynamic ecosystems
that feed agricultural growth and are often
home to extremely specialized communities
of animals and plants. However, they are
also increasingly vulnerable to the threat
of land degradation.
On top of this, climate
change is also contributing to land degradation.
Land and water resources, essential to development
and livelihoods are particularly vulnerable
to the impact of climate change which is
leading to floods, droughts and rising sea
levels. It has been estimated that nine
out of every ten recorded natural disasters
are climate related.
According to the UNEP-led
study, best-bet technologies that combine
modern science with traditional and indigenous
knowledge such as those introduced in the
nine DMP pilot countries in Africa, are
a global example of how to combat the trend
of desertification with viable solutions.
Notes to Editors:
About UNEP
The United Nations Environment
Programme, established in 1972, is the voice
for the environment within the United Nations
system. UNEP acts as a catalyst, advocate,
educator and facilitator to promote the
wise use and sustainable development of
the global environment. To accomplish this,
UNEP works with a wide range of partners,
including United Nations entities, international
organisations, national governments non-governmental
organisations, the private sector and civil
society.
The World Day to Combat
Desertification has been observed since
1995 (General Assembly Resolution A/RES/49/1995)
to promote public awareness relating to
international cooperation to combat desertification
and the effects of drought, and the implementation
of the UNCCD. Last year, more than 40 events
took place all over the world.
About UNCCD
The United Nations Convention
to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is a concrete
outcome of the United Nations Conference
on Environment and Development (UNCED) held
in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992. The Convention
was adopted in 1994 and entered into force
in 1996. To date, 193 countries have ratified
or acceded to the UNCCD. It is a unique
instrument that brought attention to the
land degradation in drylands where exist
some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and
people in the world.
For more information, please contact:
Nick Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson
and Head of Media
Anne-France White, UNEP Associate Information
Officer
+ More
Sports plays a growing
role in quest for sustainability
Nairobi, 18 June 2009
– The crucial role played by Sports in various
aspects of sustainable development was discussed
by UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner
in an address to the 'Forum on Productive
Youth Development through Sport in Africa'.
The Forum brought together
practitioners and experts in the field of
sport and productive youth development to
share experiences on best practice, discuss
collaboration strategies and make recommendations
on Sport and Development.
Describing the role
of environmental sustainability in sports,
Mr. Steiner cited the success of the Beijing
Olympics in not just meeting, but exceeding
the environmental standards outlined by
the International Olympic Committee.
Mr. Steiner, who is also
UN Under-Secretary-General, said "I
think Beijing stands out at the moment when
the Olympic games had perhaps its most transformative
impact in terms of the host city going well
beyond the parameters in terms of Beijing
itself and the country".
Over the past ten years,
UNEP has worked closely with the International
Olympic Committee in setting criteria to
define the sustainability of cities that
want to host the Olympic Games.
Mr. Steiner also acknowledged
the intersection between youth, sports and
the environment, that was most evident in
the work of Tunza, UNEP's youth network.
"Sports has become
a way in which youth can combine the reality
of their enthusiasm to be engaged in sports
while also taking social responsibility
and doing something about their communities,
neighbourhoods and the issue of environmental
sustainability."
The Forum, which is
a joint initiative of the UN Office on Sport
for Development and Peace (UNOSDP) and the
Jacobs Foundation, concludes on Thursday,
18 June.
About UNEP's Sport and
Environment Programme:
UNEP has been actively
involved in work on sport and the environment
for well over a decade. UNEP works to: promote
the integration of environmental considerations
in sports; use the popularity of sports
to promote environmental awareness and respect
for the environment among the public, especially
young people; and promote the development
of environmentally friendly sports facilities
and the manufacture of environmentally friendly
sporting goods.
For more information
please contact:
Nick Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson and Head
of Media
