17th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNCCD (COP17)

Approximately 500 million people live in areas that have experienced desertification in the past four decades. Land degradation is already affecting up to 40% of the world’s land, with far-reaching impacts on food production, water availability, livelihoods and economic stability. Droughts are increasing in frequency and severity, exacerbated by climate change and unsustainable land management.

The degradation and desertification of lands aggravate already existing economic, social and environmental issues, leading to the intensification of poverty, poor health, food insecurity, biodiversity loss, water scarcity and forced migration. The warming global climate also means an acceleration of negative effects, which in turn reduce communities’ resilience to climatic changes or natural disasters. 

Since its adoption in 1994, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification has raised awareness about desertification, land degradation and drought (DLDD). It has also pioneered efforts to achieve land degradation neutrality  (LDN), and has embarked on a number of groundbreaking thematic policy frameworks addressing drought, gender, land tenure, sand and dust storms, rangelands, and DLDD as a driver of migration.

 At the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UNCCD (COP 17), Parties will convene under the theme “Restoring Land. Restoring Hope”. It will take place during the United Nations International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists. 

At COP 17, Parties will review progress on its 2018-2030 Strategic Framework and review the final report of the Intergovernmental Working Group on the post-2030 Strategic Framework. They will also adopt the UNCCD’s biennial budget and negotiate, with a view to adopting decisions on, among other things: 

• enhancing ongoing efforts to address DLDD as one of the drivers that cause migration;
• boosting drought preparedness, response and resilience; 
• developing effective and meaningful gender-specific indicators for future Strategic Frameworks ;
• boosting resilience to sand and dust storms;
• the integration of land tenure into the implementation of the Convention and LDN initiatives; 
• supporting rangeland health and pastoralist resilience; and
• participation of civil society and the private sector in the work of the Convention. 

A High-level Segment will take place during the second week of COP 17, beginning with a Heads of State Summit and followed by an Action Agenda with thematic days: 

• Finance Day on 24 August will bring together ministers of finance, development banks and the private sector to help close the funding gap and unlock large-scale investment;
• Water Day on 25 August will advance proactive drought risk management and strengthen cooperation;
• Land and People Day on 26 August will place the voices of land stewards at the heard of discussions, highlighting the perspectives of Indigenous Peoples, local communities, pastoralists, youth, women and civil society organizations; and 
• Food Systems and Soil Health Day on 27 August will connect soil restoration to food security, agricultural productivity and the livelihoods of farming communities.

COP 16 saw the introduction of the Action Agenda for the first time in the UNCCD, with the launch of the Riyadh Action Agenda. The aim is to mobilize a broad cross-section of non-state actors to drive greater momentum and ambition around priority UNCCD targets.

The COP is the UNCCD’s main decision-making body. It is comprised of all Parties and is responsible for guiding the Convention so that it can respond to global challenges and national needs. The COP is mandated to review reports submitted by the Parties detailing how they are carrying out their LDN commitments and make recommendations on the basis of these reports. It also has the power to amend the Convention or to adopt new annexes. The COP has been meeting biennially since 2001.

UNCCD COP 17 will convene in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from 17–28 August 2026. The 24th meeting of the Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention (CRIC 24) and the 17th meeting of the Committee on Science and Technology (CST 17) will also meet simultaneously.

The Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) writers for this meeting are Mika Benoni, Ph.D.; Marc Calabretta; Pamela Chasek, Ph.D.; Mike Muzurakis; and Pauliina Upla. The Digital Editor is Anastasia Rodopoulou. The Editors are Lynn Wagner, Ph.D.; and Pamela Chasek, Ph.D.