The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is working closely with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) to ensure food security and sustainable livelihoods by promoting sustainable land management and restoration of degraded lands and impoverished soils.

The Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention (CRIC), as a subsidiary body to the Conference of Parties (COP), aims to assist the COP in regularly reviewing the implementation of the Convention.

At the 21st session of the CRIC that will take place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan from 13 to 17 November 2023, Parties will review the implementation of the UNCCD along with the 2018-2030 strategic implementation framework to provide targeted recommendations. Updates on specific activities supporting Parties in their voluntary Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) target-setting efforts will be also presented.

FAO will (co-)organize and participate in a series of side events and in the High-Level Event on Sand and Dust Storms as listed below, aiming to provide insights on actions supporting LDN achievement.

Join us at the CRIC 21 and contribute to strengthening our joint efforts to avoid, reduce and reverse land degradation and support achieving related Sustainable Development Goals.

Monday 13 November 2023

13:00-15:00 (GMT+5)  

Upgrading LDN implementation through Recarbonization of Soils (RECSOIL) 
Room Number: MET-10 

Participating countries and partners (TBC): Bangladesh, Grenada, Honduras, Mexico, Togo, Saint Lucia, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Global Soil Partnership (GSP), Partnership Initiative for Sustainable Land Management (PISLM)

Tuesday 14 November 2023

18:00-20:00 (GMT+5)

Joining forces to combat sand and dust storms: together we can foster a global response 

Launch of the publications on Sand and Dust Storms: “Sand and dust storms - A guide to mitigation, adaptation, policy and risk management measures in agriculture”, “Contingency planning process for catalysing investments and actions to enhance resilience against sand and dust storms in agriculture in the Islamic Republic of Iran”, “ Preparing for sand and dust storm contingency planning with herding communities: a case study on Mongolia”

Room Number: MET-12

Join the event via Zoom online HERE - Meeting ID: 988 2070 3084   |    Passcode: 91653600

Participating countries and partners (TBC): China, Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Mongolia, Morocco, Türkiye, Uzbekistan, Syrian Arab Republic, United Nation Coalition on Combating Sand and Dust Storms, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)

18:00-20:00 (GMT+5)

The LDN-Tenure-Gender nexus: emerging good practices and tools for transformation
Room Number: MET-10

Join the event via Zoom online HERE - Meeting ID: 986 4208 6152   |    Passcode: 22493600

Participating countries and partners (TBC): Armenia, Georgia, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies (WOCAT)

Wednesday 15 November 2023

18:00-20:00 (GMT+5)

Accelerating achievements of national targets through scalable practices within dryland landscapes 
Room Number: MET-10

Participating countries and partners: Malawi, United Republic of Tanzania, Global Environment Facility (GEF), International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies (WOCAT)

More information available here.

Thursday 16 November 2023

8:00-10:00 (GMT+5)

Integrated land use planning to reverse the trend: from degraded land to healthy soils – for food security and land degradation neutrality

Room Number: MET-12

Participating countries and partners (TBC): Colombia, Ecuador, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Morocco, Türkiye, Uzbekistan, Economics of Land Degradation (ELD), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies (WOCAT)

13:00-15:00 (GMT+5)

How can we utilise local knowledge and women's empowerment to create more drought-resilient dryland forests and silvopastoral ecosystems? 

Room Number: Gender Caucus Session 2 

Participating countries and partners (TBC): Maghreb Arab Union, Mongolia, Zimbabwe, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)

18:00-20:00 (GMT+5)

Using national data and expert knowledge to map Land degradation, estimate SDG 15.3.1 and report to UNCCD: successful stories from 6 countries 

Room Number: MET-10

Participating countries and partners (TBC):   Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bhutan, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Türkiye, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies (WOCAT)

Friday 17 November 2023 

13:00-15:00 (GMT+5)

Learning from each other: successful experiences on knowledge exchange and South South Cooperation for achieving Land Degradation Neutrality

Launch the publication “Promoting sustainable land management through evidence-based decision support-a guide with country insights” by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies (WOCAT) and Global Environment Facility (GEF).

Room Number: MET-10

Participating countries and partners (TBC): Angola, Brazil, Cabo Verde, Panama, Uruguay,  Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies (WOCAT)