The UNCCD intergovernmental working group on drought, co-chaired by IDOS researcher Dr Michael Brüntrup, completes its preparations for COP 16.
Combating the effects of drought is one of the two core issues of the Convetion on Desertification, whose original title is UN Convention to Combat Desertification in Those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa (UNCCD). While the issue of land and soil has gained in importance in recent years, the issue of drought has so far been neglected. To change this, the recent UNCCD Conference of the Parties decided at its 15th session, UNCCD COP 15, to establish an Intergovernmental Working Group (IWG) on Drought for the three-year period 2022-2024. Its task is to identify and assess global policy instruments and regional policy frameworks, link them to national plans for effective drought management under the Convention, and support a shift from reactive to proactive drought management.
This IWG on Drought, co-chaired by Dr Michael Brüntrup, Agricultural Expert at IDOS, and Hon. Alfred Prospere, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Rural Development in the Government of Saint Lucia, has met six times in person and many times virtually over the past two years. In the first week of June 2024, this work was concluded in Riyhad, Saudi Arabia, where also the next COP 16 will take place.
In the end, seven options have been developed: (i) Amendment to the Convention; (ii) COP Decision on cooperation with the Global Environment Facility (GEF); (iii) COP Guidelines for the Global Mechanism (an institution under the UNCCD); (iv) Global Framework on Drought Resilience; (v) Political Declaration; (vi) Protocol; and (vii) Special and Ambitious COP Decision on Drought. These options are not mutually exclusive, and different combinations of options may be considered at COP 16, depending on the focus, objectives, time horizon and other factors. A global goal plays an important role in several options.
It remains to be seen what the Parties ultimately decide – the problem will grow in any case, with climate change, increasing demands on land and water and growing populations in many regions of the world. As in many cases, prevention is usually cheaper than repair in the long run, if damage can be repaired at all. But unfortunately, major changes often only occur after major damage has been experienced, just as in Germany the drought problem is only being taken seriously (again) after the summers of drought in 2018 and 2019.
IDOS works together with the UNCCD in various contexts. In addition to the drought issue, the topic of sustainable land management has also played an increasingly important role recently as part of the INTERFACES project. Just last week, an event with a panel discussion and a knowledge marketplace was held on June 18 to mark World Desertification Day and the 30th anniversary of the UNCCD.