Highlights for Wednesday, 25 February 2009
On the third day of the IPM, delegates discussed land and drought. Three panelists opened the discussion of land. Panelist Harold Liversage, International Fund for Agricultural Development, underscored the importance of land tenure security for economic growth and poverty reduction. Panelist John Bruce, Land and Development Solutions International, discussed shared-use resources and proposed demarcating and registering common-use areas, instituting model by-laws, and providing community-level technical assistance. Panelist Luc Gnacadja, Executive Secretary of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), presented a framework to address land degradation, and underlined the role of land in carbon sequestration.
Two panelists offered statements during the discussion of drought. Panelist Constance Neely, Heifer International, highlighted the role of grazing and agro-ecological practice to manage ecosystems. She also emphasized the need to consider how policies would work across sectors and to address root causes, and stressed the importance of participatory research that engages local communities in identifying research priorities. Panelist Jeffrey Herrick, US Department of Agriculture, noted the importance of integrating scientific and local knowledge in responding to drought and highlighted comments calling for increased data collection, standardization and sharing.
