African Union (AU) and United Nations (UN) officials have called for immediate action against rapidly expanding desertification and land degradation across Africa, warning that failure to act could result in ecological collapse and intensified climate-related disasters.
The call was made during the AU Great Green Wall Initiative Experts’ and Partners’ Engagement Meeting on Tuesday in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.
Speaking at the event, Mithika Mwenda, Executive Director of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance, noted the need for swift intervention, citing climate change, unsustainable resource exploitation and forest ecosystem destruction as key drivers of worsening land degradation.
“A failure to conserve habitats and halt species’ extinction would have knock-on effects on objectives of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change since significant greenhouse gas emissions result from the destruction and degradation of forests, peatlands, wetlands and other high carbon ecosystems,” Mwenda said.
He cautioned that the alarming expansion of the Sahara Desert southward and the Kalahari Desert northward is a reminder of the urgent need for emission reductions and sustainable resource management.
Louise Baker, Managing Director of the Global Mechanism at the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, warned that Africa’s natural resources are shrinking due to unsustainable use and called for a shift in consumption patterns.
Meanwhile, Harsen Nyambe, Director of Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment at the AU Commission, noted that escalating land degradation is increasing drought frequency.
“Desert is encroaching more land in Africa. Measures must be taken to be able to contain the desert from expanding further and to make sure that the lives of the people living in those areas are protected,” Nyambe told APA in an interview.
The event also called for the swift implementation of international environmental agreements to combat desertification, deforestation, and ecological decline.
Central to the discussions was the Great Green Wall Initiative, launched in 2007, which aims to restore degraded landscapes and support millions of livelihoods across Africa.
MG/jn/APA