Eleventh meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP11)
“A stronger UNCCD for a Land Degradation-Neutral World”

The two-day high level segment at UNCCD COP 11 opened on Monday morning, with welcoming statements from the host government and UNCCD Secretariat, a message from the UN Secretary General, and special statements from regional and interest groups. Two round tables then convened on: “The role of the UNCCD in achieving a LDNW in the context of sustainable development;” and “Overcoming the hurdles of scaling up and disseminating good practices in the context of the UNCCD implementation process.”

In the morning and afternoon, two COW contact groups on budget and non-budgetary matters and the CRIC contact group on strengthening relationships with relevant conventions and international organizations, continued work on draft decisions.

Among side events, the World Business Council on Sustainable Development, Syngenta and the UNCCD co-organized an informal breakfast dialogue on business and policy solutions for sustainable land management (SLM), followed by a SLM-Business Forum that convened for the rest of the day.
At the Rio Conventions Pavilion, the GEF and partners convened Resource Mobilization Day.

In the evening the UNCCD Secretariat hosted a high-level dinner during which awards were presented to three winners of the second Land for Life Award and five recipients of the Drylands Champions award.