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Rome - It is estimated that 83% of rural people in Sub-Saharan Africa depend on
the land for their livelihoods, but 40% of Africa's land resources are
currently degraded.
Poverty, hunger, unemployment, forced migration, conflict and security issues are just some of the many threats arising from this situation.
To help address the threat of land degradation, desertification and drought, the Great Green Wall initiative is hosting an international forum to build new partnerships and accelerate progress in tackling these issues.
The two-day event, organised by the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations under the auspices of the African Union Commission, is taking place at FAO headquarters.
Since its adoption in 2007 by African heads of state and government, the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and the Sahel Initiative has become Africa's flagship initiative in tackling the detrimental social, economic and environmental impacts of land degradation, desertification, drought and climate change.
Many threats
Seasonal temperatures In the Sahel have risen between 1.5-2°C, making land and the local populations all the more vulnerable to weather events that have become more and more unpredictable and severe.
Bold co-ordinated action and more investments in sustainable land management are needed to boost food production, help people adapt to climate change and mitigate its effects, support biodiversity, enhance businesses based on land resources and contribute to a green economy, the report says.
A mosaic of natural resource management programmes underway in some of the countries, demonstrate the potential of sustainable land management to boost food security, improve community livelihoods and build the resilience of the land and the people to the changing climate.
Shrubs and herbs
In southern Niger, for instance, farmers have rehabilitated over 5 million hectares of land, using a low cost land restoration technique called farmer-managed natural regeneration. This has boosted crop and livestock yields, as well the production of medicine and firewood.
In Senegal, 27 000 hectares of degraded land were restored by the planting of 11 million trees. Part of this re-greened area is being converted into a community-based reserve for eco-tourism.
A mechanised technology, known as the Vallerani-system inspired from traditional practices, has helped to restore more than 50 000 hectares of agro-forestry systems in Burkina Faso, Niger and Senegal. It is seeding native trees, shrubs and herbs, boosting the production of crops, gums and resins, as well as providing fodder for livestock.
Maria-Helena Semedo, FAO's deputy director-general said: "The time has come to break the vicious cycle of crises in Africa's Sahel by building the ability of rural communities to weather drought and other shocks, rather than merely helping them recover from disaster."
So far, the African Union - in co-operation with the European Union, FAO, the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD, the Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew and the Walloon Region of Belgium - has mobilised more than €50m in support of the Great Green Wall Initiative.
Poverty, hunger, unemployment, forced migration, conflict and security issues are just some of the many threats arising from this situation.
To help address the threat of land degradation, desertification and drought, the Great Green Wall initiative is hosting an international forum to build new partnerships and accelerate progress in tackling these issues.
The two-day event, organised by the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations under the auspices of the African Union Commission, is taking place at FAO headquarters.
Since its adoption in 2007 by African heads of state and government, the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and the Sahel Initiative has become Africa's flagship initiative in tackling the detrimental social, economic and environmental impacts of land degradation, desertification, drought and climate change.
Many threats
Seasonal temperatures In the Sahel have risen between 1.5-2°C, making land and the local populations all the more vulnerable to weather events that have become more and more unpredictable and severe.
Bold co-ordinated action and more investments in sustainable land management are needed to boost food production, help people adapt to climate change and mitigate its effects, support biodiversity, enhance businesses based on land resources and contribute to a green economy, the report says.
A mosaic of natural resource management programmes underway in some of the countries, demonstrate the potential of sustainable land management to boost food security, improve community livelihoods and build the resilience of the land and the people to the changing climate.
Shrubs and herbs
In southern Niger, for instance, farmers have rehabilitated over 5 million hectares of land, using a low cost land restoration technique called farmer-managed natural regeneration. This has boosted crop and livestock yields, as well the production of medicine and firewood.
In Senegal, 27 000 hectares of degraded land were restored by the planting of 11 million trees. Part of this re-greened area is being converted into a community-based reserve for eco-tourism.
A mechanised technology, known as the Vallerani-system inspired from traditional practices, has helped to restore more than 50 000 hectares of agro-forestry systems in Burkina Faso, Niger and Senegal. It is seeding native trees, shrubs and herbs, boosting the production of crops, gums and resins, as well as providing fodder for livestock.
Maria-Helena Semedo, FAO's deputy director-general said: "The time has come to break the vicious cycle of crises in Africa's Sahel by building the ability of rural communities to weather drought and other shocks, rather than merely helping them recover from disaster."
So far, the African Union - in co-operation with the European Union, FAO, the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD, the Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew and the Walloon Region of Belgium - has mobilised more than €50m in support of the Great Green Wall Initiative.
