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Contribution to the 2020 High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development Submission of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
1. From the UNCCD perspective, what are the critical gaps in implementation and the priority measures to accelerate action and support transformative pathways for achieving the 2030 Agenda
With only 10 years left to reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the decisions and investments made today will determine the quality of Life on Land (SDG15) tomorrow. We have the knowledge and technology to shape a prosperous and more secure future based on rights, rewards and above all a sense of responsibility to future generation for the protection of our land resources, i.e., soil, water and biodiversity. The critical gap remains the political support for restorative action in both the public and private sectors. Without this support and new business models, investments, incentives and other enabling factors for sustainable land management and restoration will be inadequate to stimulate action on the ground at the scale required.
Several gaps need to be filled at the same time. All stakeholders need to be engaged to act with the appropriate urgency. Transformation will only take place in collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders, including business leaders, sub-national actors, indigenous peoples, youth, women and other segments of civil society. Innovative partnerships among these diverse stakeholders will be essential to creating sustained action pathways for achieving the 2030 Agenda. Access to financial and land resources, often hindered by poor land governance and gender inequality, are critical for these pathways to function effectively.
In September 2019 in New Delhi, India, the 14th meeting of the UNCCD’s Conference of the Parties (COP 14) agreed on 36 decisions to scale up and accelerate action on the ground to ensure that the Convention’s goals in the framework of its 2018-2030 Strategic Framework are achieved. Implementing these decisions is challenging but also represents a tremendous opportunity for countries to create their own pathways for achieving the SDG targets. These decisions fully recognize that improving the health and productivity of our land resources and achieving Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN - SDG target 15.3) can act as an accelerator for progress to many of the other SDGs as well as play an integrative role in national development finance and planning.
At COP 14, countries agreed to address the insecurity of land tenure, including gender inequality, promote land restoration to reduce carbon emissions, and mobilize innovative sources of finance from public and private sources to support the implementation of these decisions at the country level. Reporting on these activities will be improved to ensure it captures key issues related to land health, such as gender responsiveness, drought preparedness and planning, and the impacts of consumption and production patterns and flows. Through the Delhi Declaration, ministers expressed support for new initiatives and coalitions aiming to improve human health and well-being, the functioning of ecosystems, and to advance peace and security through sustainable land management and restoration.
In terms of resource mobilization, while traditional partners, donors and funds still have an important role to play, the private sector (including foundations) can play an important and constructive role in financing a paradigm shift in the way land resources are managed. The private sector is a key stakeholder in bringing coherence to efforts that address the indirect drivers of biodiversity loss, land degradation and climate change, especially if these issues are mainstreamed effectively into value chains. There is an urgent need for the private sector to be transformative partners in implementing the SDGs.
