Event: The sixteenth session of the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification

Where: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

When: 2-13 December 2024

Background：

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), established in 1994, stands as the exclusive globally binding treaty that establishes a connection between environmental conservation and sustainable land management for development. The sixteenth session of the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP16) will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from 2 to 13 December 2024 and will unite leaders from governments, the private sector, civil society, and global stakeholders to accelerate progress in sustainable land management. We'll explore the vital connections between land and sustainability during high-level sessions, including a Heads of States Summit and interactive dialogues.

The Chinese Academy of Forestry has made fruitful achievements in desertification control research, providing important scientific and technological support for China's desertification control and ecological construction and the UNCCD implementation of the Chinese government. In 2004, the Chinese Academy of Forestry and the Secretariat of the UNCCD signed a Memorandum of Understanding to establish the International Training Center to Combat Desertification and continue to carry out training courses on desertification. In 2017, the Chinese Academy of Forestry hosted the Youth Forum of the 13th Conference of the Parties of the UNCCD and a side event on Science and Technology of combating desertification. In 2019, Dr. Pradeep Monga, Deputy Executive Secretary of the UNCCD Secretariat, visited the Chinese Academy of Forestry to promote cooperation between the two sides. In 2024, Mr. Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary of the UNCCD Secretariat, and his delegation visited the Chinese Academy of Forestry to discuss cooperation opportunities and promote international cooperation in desertification control. At present, a total of eight experts from the Chinese Academy of Forestry serve as UNCCD’s experts, participating in international cooperation on desertification control and contributing wisdom to global land restoration and sustainable management.

In 2023, the National Forestry and Grassland Administration and the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States signed a Memorandum of Understanding to establish the China-Arab International Research Center on Drought, Desertification and Land Degradation (the DDLD Center). In December 2024, the DDLD Center will jointly organize side events with partners from China and the Arab countries at the UNCCD COP16 with the purpose to promote the international cooperation on combatting preventing drought and combating desertification and land degradation between China and Arab countries.

For more information, please visit: https://www.unccd.int/cop16