UN Efforts to Combat Desertification... And What About Kuwait?
When reviewing the efforts of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the Chinese model stands out as one of the most successful global experiences in restoring degraded lands. For nearly half a century, China has implemented one of the world’s largest and longest-running environmental restoration programs, becoming today a benchmark in combating desertification and restoring ecosystems.
UN officials have emphasized that this program is gaining increasing importance amid the worsening global land degradation crisis, as countries have pledged to restore more than one billion hectares of degraded land by 2030.
The Executive Secretary of the UNCCD also noted that China has emerged as a leading global model that has successfully and on a large scale reversed the trajectory of land degradation, transforming degraded areas into productive lands, in alignment with the objectives of the international convention.
China achieved this success through an integrated scientific approach to developing and reclaiming desert and sandy lands, based on data from relevant authorities, satellite imagery, land-use planning, and programs for soil and vegetation conservation.
Among the most prominent of these initiatives is the Three-North Shelterbelt Forest Program, launched in 1978, spanning over 4,000 kilometers, and scheduled to continue until 2050. It is considered one of the world’s largest afforestation and desertification control projects.
The United Nations plays a pivotal role in leading international efforts to combat desertification and land degradation, given the direct impact of this issue on food security, climate change, and biodiversity. The UNCCD, adopted in 1994, serves as the cornerstone of these efforts, representing an international agreement that links environmental protection, sustainable development, and sound land management, and includes 194 member states.
The world has witnessed the implementation of many pioneering initiatives in this field, including the Great Green Wall project in Africa, which stretches approximately 8,000 kilometers, alongside land restoration projects in Iraq and several African countries, as well as programs to rehabilitate around 20,000 hectares of land in both Georgia and Armenia.
In light of these successful international experiences, the question remains: What plans and projects can Kuwait adopt to curb desertification, restore its degraded lands, and enhance the sustainability of its natural resources in line with the Sustainable Development Goals and Kuwait’s future vision?
