Panama city: Twenty-one countries spanning Asia, Latin America, and Europe are actively advancing efforts to prepare and improve their reports to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). These efforts are bolstered by the technical support and expertise provided by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), facilitated through the Global Environment Facility (GEF).
According to EMM, the FAO is assisting these countries in strengthening their institutional and technical capabilities to assess land degradation. This support is crucial for estimating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goal Indicator 15.3.1 and achieving land degradation neutrality (LDN). The FAO, in collaboration with the World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Techniques (WOCAT), has developed an innovative methodology for LDN reporting, tested during the fourth UNCCD reporting period from 2019 to 2022. National reporting is essential for tracking trends, analyzing degradation drivers, and adopting evidence-based decisions to enhance livelihoods, restore landscapes, and safeguard biodiversity.
The core of this initiative is FAO’s commitment to enhancing technical capacities and supporting inclusive reporting processes. By collaborating with national teams, FAO experts are developing analytical tools for data comparison, tracking land cover changes, and assessing land productivity trends. This approach offers a comprehensive view of land degradation, empowering governments and local actors to prioritize sustainable land management and combat land degradation effectively.
FAO’s initiative also fosters global action through national leadership by promoting knowledge sharing and capacity development. As part of this effort, a side event was hosted by the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development of Paraguay and FAO during the twenty-third session of the Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention (CRIC 23) in Panama City. The event showcased progress made by Paraguay, Peru, and the Dominican Republic in developing their national reports and provided a platform for knowledge exchange among national focal points.
In Paraguay, the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development launched the UNCCD National Reporting process in Asunci³n, highlighting the country’s commitment to a participatory and transparent reporting process. The Dominican Republic also initiated its National Reporting Process, focusing on enhancing submissions through high-resolution data. Peru hosted a technical workshop to strengthen national reporting capacities, while Bhutan launched its 2026 UNCCD National Reporting process, focusing on assessing national land degradation trends.
In addition to these countries, Argentina, Bolivia, Guatemala, Mexico, Mongolia, and Panama have commenced their reporting processes. Meanwhile, Brazil, China, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Honduras, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Nigeria, the Philippines, and Serbia are in the process of establishing institutional arrangements for technical reporting activities.