Land, biodiversity and climate
The 4th international civil society summit Désertif’actions took place in Ouagadougou – Burkina Faso from June 19 to 22 and gathered more than 380 participants from 40 countries, representatives of 230 multi-actors organizations : local communities, NGO, scientists, local communities, international organizations, public and private actors…
- 4 themed workshops
- 3 panels
- more than 380 participants
- 40 countries represented
- 230 civil society organizations represented
This 4th edition was held in Africa for the first time, in a country where «19% of national territory lands are degraded and that has lost 2,4 millions hectares of forest, turned into savannah in 11 years» (SPONG). This situation reflects a Sahelian reality and more widely the fast spread of land degradation in the world.
With the upcoming negotiations of the 14th Conference of Parties of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in India in September of 2019, participants wish to weigh on decisions and put land back to the centre of conversations. In order to achieve that, a declaration that includes contributions and recommendations produced during these three days of work, has been validated at the closure of the summit.
Declaration excerpts
« Our conviction is that we must mobilize the dormant forces of the earth with the forces that we are, actors of development, the forces active in agriculture, pastoral, oasis, island and many other contexts , all citizens of the world: together, we are not the defenders of the land in the face of desertification, but WE are the land that defends itself. »
(…) Faced with the increased insecurity in a growing number of countries covering arid zones, we refuse to let ourselves be frightened and we affirm our determination to oppose the forces of our commitment to fatality of destiny announced.
(…) We are determined to carry out the land tenure -related discussions that civil society for the first time has explicitly carried into the official agenda of the Conference of the Parties to Combat Desertification.
(…) In this agenda, our contributions will go to the earth-biodiversity-climate links, to the earth-renewable energies link, to the rural-urban link, to the earth-health link.
Download
Final report (September 2019)
Press Release – Announcement of the International Summit Désertif’actions 2019 Declaration
Opening ceremony
- Speech of M. Batio Bassière, Minister of the Environment, the Green Economy and the Climate Change of Burkina Faso
- Speech of M. Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification
- Speech of M. Patrice Burger, President of the Centre d’Actions et de Réalisations Internationales
- Speech of Ms. Juliette Compaoré, President of the Board of Directors of the SPONG
Opening plenary
Workshop 1 folder – Civil society and GGWSSI
Workshop 2 folder – Pastoralism in Drylands and Combating Desertification
- Presentations
- Restitution (pdf)
Workshop 3 folder – Land Tenure and Neutrality
Workshop 4 folder – Multi usage of water in arid areas
