Highlights and images for 4 September 2019

Summary

Highlights for Wednesday, 4 September 2019

Delegates attending the 14th Conference of the Parties (COP 14) to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) continued their consideration of key Convention themes, meeting in parallel sessions of the Convention’s two subsidiary bodies: the Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention (CRIC); and the Committee on Science and Technology (CST).Key themes of the day included:

the development of harmonized indicators to support countries in monitoring drought and enhancing their preparedness;

funding for implementation of the Convention and the land degradation neutrality (LDN) target; and

the development of targeted capacity-building programmes for countries.

Many delegates expressed appreciation for the work of the CST and the Science-Policy Interface in strengthening the role of science, especially through their “pragmatic” guidance on how countries can develop cost-effective drought monitoring programmes that build on existing initiatives at national, regional and global level.The role of the Global Mechanism as the operational arm of the UNCCD came under scrutiny during the CRIC morning session, with some delegations reiterating the perennial call for it not to overreach and stick to its resource mobilization mandate. In the corridors, some observers pointed to the tricky balancing act that the Secretariat has to play between being proactive and effective, while also remaining responsive to the priorities of parties.On the margins of the Conference, more than 15 side events took place exploring, among other topics: natural capital accounting in support of LDN; contribution of global non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to the LDN 2030 target; “pathways for big money to reach local communities”; the land degradation, climate change and migration nexus in the Sahel region; and sustainable land management practices by Indian businesses.For more details on the day’s negotiations and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our daily Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB).

IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB meeting coverage, is providing daily web coverage and daily reports from UNCCD COP 14. In addition, IISD Reporting Services will publish a summary and analyrs report from this session on Monday, 16 September 2019.

Photos by IISD/ENB | Ángeles Estrada

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