⇒ The fifteenth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP15) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) was held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, from 9 to 20 May 2022.
- COP 15 is a key moment in the fight against desertification, land degradation and drought. It was built on the findings of the second edition of the Global Land Outlook.
Theme:
The theme of the COP15 was ‘Land. Life. Legacy: From scarcity to prosperity’.
- The theme is a call to action to ensure land, the lifeline on this planet, continues to benefit present and future generations.
The Indian delegation led by Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shri Bhupender Yadav, attended in the 15th Session of the Conference of Parties of UNCCD.
The Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Shri Bhupender Yadav addressed the opening plenary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) Conference of Parties at its fifteenth session in Cote d’Ivoire on 10 May 2022.
Stating that taking care of the land that sustains us can help the fight against global warming, the Union Minister pitched for promoting lifestyles for environment.
Delivering the National Statement, the Minister gladly reported that:
During India’s Presidency, the Bureau has successfully convened seven high-level meetings that witnessed vibrant discussions and led to decisions on:
- Leveraging multilateral platforms on the road to Rio+ 30.
- Scheduling of the Fifteenth session of Conference of Parties (COP-15) at Cote d’Ivoire in May 2022.
- The deliberations in the Intergovernmental Working Group (IWG) on Drought,
- Report of the Committee on Science and Technology (CST) Committee for Review of the Implementation of the Convention (CRIC-19). Two extra-ordinary sessions to deliberate on the interim budget for 2022 and recommend the unanimously agreed extension of term of the Executive Secretary, UNCCD.
Key Points:
- COP15 brought together leaders from governments, the private sector, civil society and other key stakeholders from around the world to drive progress in the future sustainable management of land and explore links between land and other key sustainability issues.
- Drought, land restoration, and related enablers such as land rights, gender equality and youth empowerment were among the top items on the Conference agenda.
- For the first time, an Intergovernmental Working Group (IWG) on effective policy and implementation measures for addressing drought under the United Nations Convention for Combating Desertification (UNCCD) was established by decision 23/COP.14. A draft report has been prepared. This was discussed during COP-15.
- India had hosted the fourteenth session of Conference of Parties of United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification from 2nd to 13th September 2019, at New Delhi and is the current president of the same.