The Decade Launch,
African Region - 16 August, Nairobi, Kenya

Launch of the UN Decade for Deserts and the fight Against Desertification in Africa

 

At a press conference well attended by local and international journalists, the UN Decade for Deserts and the Fight Against Desertification was launched at  the  Headquarters of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Nairobi. The event was co-organised by UNEP and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to mark the start in Africa, of an 11-year global campaign that will run from January 2010 to December 2020 to raise awareness about the plight and value of the drylands, and needed action to keep them productive.

A panel of experts spoke on the aims, targets and key themes of the decade. The panelists included Ms. Angela Cropper, Deputy Executive Director, UNEP, Mr. Aeneas Chuma, UNDP Resident Representative, Dr. Tony Simons, Deputy Director General, World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Dr. Ayub Macharia, Director General, National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) and Ms. Lucy Mulenkei, who was representing indigenous communities living in Kenya’s drylands.

Citing examples of UNEP projects to combat desertification, Ms. Cropper said that the UN will use the decade to raise awareness on the causes of, and solutions to, desertification.

On his part, Mr. Chuma cautioned that unless the livelihoods of people living in arid areas are improved, achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), particularly poverty reduction, will become an increasingly difficult challenge.

 

Explaining that the term deserts comes from the Latin word deserere, meaning ‘to abandon’, Dr. Simons said the Decade should be used to remind the world not to abandon the peoples and ecosystems in the world’s drylands.

The two remaining panellists gave the launch a local perspective. Dr. Ayub Macharia urged all actors to work in concert to improve rain-water harvesting in the drylands. The water can be used both for domestic purposes and to help grow trees to curb the spread of desertification.

Lucy Mulenkei highlighted the social impacts of desertification. “Land degradation in the drylands is a major reason behind increasing migration to urban areas from arid regions,” she said.

 

 

 

There was substantial media pick-up of the event, with UNEP experts in Nairobi and West Asia conducting several media interviews on desertification. African newswires and newspapers also ran news stories and features on the decade launch. 

For more information, contact:

Waiganjo Njoroge
Division of Communications and Public Information (DCPI)
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
P.O. Box 30552
Nairobi 00100
Kenya
Phone: +254 (0) 20 762 5261
Cel:+254 (0) 723 857 270
Fax: +254-20 762 3692
E-mail: waiganjo.njoroge@unep.org