TRIPLE COP YEAR
From Mongolia… T he first event in the 2026 triptych was the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from August 17-28 under the theme “Restoring Land. Restoring Hope.” Desertification is one of the biggest environmental challenges of our time, affecting up to 40 percent of the world’s land and threatening over one billion people globally. Mongolia, the host nation, is among the countries most severely affected with around 82 percent of its land already degraded, one of the highest percentages in the world. The capital Ulaanbaatar itself demonstrates the dramatic impacts of desertification. Exposed to extreme temperatures with winter temperatures averaging −16°C and dropping to −30°C, the bitter winter cold leads to intensive coal burning for heating, causing significant air pollution. Desertification and land degradation are now further exacerbating the challenge: Ulaanbaatar is overwhelmed by mass climate migration from displaced herders from across the country. According to estimates, around 60 percent of the population lives in sprawling tent districts on the outskirts of the capital. City leaders at COP17 explicitly warned that urban resources are reaching breaking point. Drought is often described as a shortage of rain, but specialists at COP17 said its severity is increasingly determined by what happens to land before the rain stops. “Drought is coming coupled with the impact of climate change,” UNCCD Executive
crops, grasslands and natural ecosystems survive dry periods. Degraded soils shed water more quickly and lose productivity, making
communities more vulnerable when temperatures climb or rainfall becomes erratic, according to experts. “You cannot maintain healthy soil without managing your water,” Fouad said. The connection between land and water is especially important for agriculture, two sectors which have high priority for the OPEC Fund, as demonstrated by its long history of engagement as well as its recent US$1 billion pledge to the World Bank’s Water Forward initiative (see page 14). João Campari, Global Leader of WWF’s Food Practice, made it clear: “If you don’t have water, you don’t have agriculture. If you don’t have land, you don’t have agriculture.” The OPEC Fund used its participation in COP17 to build on the momentum of the previous desertification conference in Riyadh in 2024. “Land restoration is not only an environmental goal, it is a development imperative,” said Gerardo Parco, Director, Sustainability and Climate Change, who together with Senior Country Manager Toshifumi Kazaoka represented the OPEC Fund in Ulaanbaatar: “We recognize that healthy land systems are fundamental to food security, economic opportunity and climate resilience. The OPEC Fund is scaling financing for drought management, nature-based solutions and resilient infrastructure.”
The conference secured a total of US$1.3 billion in financing from a broad range of donors for land restoration and drought resilience in 23 countries. As COP President, Mongolia launched the Steppe Action Agenda, including a US$1.2 billion Rangeland Flagship Initiative. Rangelands - including grasslands, savannas and other areas used by grazing animals and pastoral communities - cover 54 percent of the Earth’s land surface and support around two billion people, according to the UNCCD. The launch of the Drought Resilience Investment Facility, as the world’s first global finance instrument dedicated to this issue, marked another milestone. However, Ulaanbaatar ended without resolving one of the meeting’s key issues - whether to create a legally binding global drought agreement - postponing a decision until the next round of talks, set for Egypt in two years’ time. The issue had already been deferred from the previous COP two years ago. Esther Penunia, Secretary General of the Asian
Secretary Yasmine Fouad told the Associated Press. “It’s becoming more frequent, more intense and more prolonged.” Healthy soils absorb and store water, helping
Yasmine Fouad, Executive Secretary, UNCCD; Esther Penunia, Secretary General, the Asian Farmers Association; Linda Krueger, Director of Biodiversity and Infrastructure Policy, The Nature Conservatory (L-R)
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Photos (L-R): AFA; The Nature Conservatory
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