Mirian Gom 
Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), Yasmine Fouad
ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia – The Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), Yasmine Fouad, has urged delegates at the ongoing COP17 conference to ensure that commitments on land restoration translate into concrete action as negotiations enter their final stage.
Speaking with six UNCCD media fellows on the sidelines of the conference on Friday, Fouad described the summit as the “COP of implementation,” stressing that its success would ultimately depend on actions taken after the negotiations.
“Rest assured that COP17 is the COP of implementation. Implementation can either mean putting commitments into action or simply putting words on paper without real impact,” she said.
Fouad noted that the conference is taking place amid growing global environmental and geopolitical challenges, including worsening droughts, rising temperatures and extreme weather linked to climate change.
She said the UNCCD Secretariat arrived in Mongolia with a clear focus on food security, the land-water nexus, financing for land restoration and strengthening drought resilience.
“One thing we wanted to change at this COP was to show that land is central to everyone and that people matter,” she added.
The 17th Session of the Conference of the Parties (COP17), which began on August 17 in Ulaanbaatar, is being held under the theme “Restoring Land. Restoring Hope.” The conference also coincides with the United Nations-designated International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists.
Negotiations have centred on strengthening global efforts to combat desertification, restore degraded land, improve drought preparedness and mobilise sustainable financing for vulnerable countries.
An initial 15-page draft outcome document released early Friday remained under review ahead of the conference’s closing plenary.
“No, no,” she said, explaining that the country responsible for blocking some agenda items is neither a member of the biodiversity convention nor a party to the climate process.
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Otamere Gladness 
Oluwafunbi Bello