United Nations Convention to Combat Dissertification (UNCCD)

Recognizing that combating desertification is essential to ensuring the long-term productivity of inhabited drylands, 191 governments had joined the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification as at September 2005. This Convention aims to promote effective action through innovative local programmes and supportive international partnerships. The treaty acknowledges that the struggle to protect drylands will be a long one - there will be no quick fix. This is because the causes of desertification are many and complex, ranging from international trade patterns to unsustainable land management practices. Real and difficult changes will have to be made, at both the international and the local level.