(Image source from: www.unccd.int)

India will host the 14th session of the Conference of Parties to United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) this year to address the issue of land degradation and desertification and it is scheduled to take place from 7-18 October 2019.

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa (UNCCD) is a Convention to combat desertification and mitigate the effects of drought through national action programs that incorporate long-term strategies supported by international cooperation and partnership arrangements.

The UNCCD was established in 1994 and has 197 parties working towards maintaining and restoring land and soil productivity and mitigating the effects of drought.

“With India’s leadership, the international effort towards achieving land deagradation neutrality could take huge strides forward,” Monique Barbut, Executive Secretary, UNCCD, said in statement.

“India recognises land rehabilitation that can accelerate the transition to sustainable development globally and and as it assumes the COP Presidency, the Convention’s 197 parties can create the environment we need for innovative and ingenious solutions to our common goals,” she added

The UNCCD warns that by 2025, 1.8 billion people will "experience absolute water scarcity", and two-thirds of the world will be facing water shortage problems. India was among the first countries to commit to the UN's 2030 Sustainable Development Goal of stopping land degradation. "India is one of the countries affected by desertification, and is facing new challenges, among which are recurrent droughts and dust and sand storms," Barbut said.

"The country has tremendous potential to turn these challenges into opportunities through improved land use and management, and to provide the leadership the world needs to take bold actions." The conference will receive the first report on desertification from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

The last conference of parties, was held in China in October 2017.

-Sai Kumar