India to host 14th COP of UNCCD
In September 2019, for the first time, India will host the 14th session of the Conference of Parties (COP-14) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The The 14th session of COP will stress on three crucial issues: desertification, land degradation and drought.
India faces a severe problem of land degradation, or soil becoming unfit for cultivation. About 29% of India’s land (in 2011-13) was degraded, this being a 0.57% increase from 2003-05.
ISRO Report, 2016
The global conference will be hosted at India Expo Mart Limited in Greater Noida from 2nd to 13th September and is expected to see participation from at least 5,000 delegates from nearly 197 countries.
Ahead of the COP-14, Mr. Javadekar launched a flagship project, part of a larger international initiative called the Bonn Challenge, to enhance India’s capacity for forest landscape restoration (FLR). The Bonn Challenge is a global effort to bring 150 million hectares of the world’s deforested and degraded land under restoration by 2020, and 350 million hectares by 2030.
At the previous edition of the COP, India had committed to restore 13 million hectares of degraded and deforested land by the year 2020, and an additional 8 million hectares by 2030.
About United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
The United Nations has three major Conventions:
- The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC),
- The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD),
- The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).
Adopted in Paris in June,1994, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is the sole legally binding international agreement linking environment and development to sustainable land management. The Convention addresses specifically the arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas, known as the drylands, where some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and peoples can be found.
India became a signatory in 1994 and ratified in 1996.
The Conference of the Parties (COP)
The Conference of the Parties (COP) was established by the Convention as the supreme decision-making body; it comprises ratifying governments and regional economic integration organizations, such as the European Union.
One of the main functions of the COP is to review reports submitted by the Parties detailing how they are carrying out their commitments; the COP makes recommendations on the basis of these reports.
Till now, the COP has been meeting biennially since 2001 and 13 COPs have taken place. The last, COP13 took place in 2017 in Ordos, China and the upcoming COP 14 would be held in India in September, 2019. India will takeover the COP presidency from China for two years until the next COP in 2021.
WDCD India
- World Day to combat Desertification (WDCD) on 17th June 2019
- Silver Jubilee year of The UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
- Theme of WDCD 2019 -“25 YEARS – Let’s grow the future together”
More information of 14th COP
Dates: 2-13 September 2019
Location: New Delhi, Delhi, India
Contact: UNCCD Secretariat
Phone: +49-228-815-2800
fax: +49-228-815-2898/99
e-mail: secretariat@unccd.int
www: http://www.unccd.int
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