DS-SLM Side Event at UNCCD COP14 hosted by Tunisia

The side event at the UNCCD COP14 in Delhi, India, was organized under the lead of DG-ACTA in the Ministry of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries of Tunisia, in collaboration with FAO, WOCAT and the implementing country partners of the GEF-funded FAO project DS-SLM.

Representatives from three of the 14 implementing countries: Tunisia, Bosnia and Herzegovinia and Thailand  showcased their experiences and processes established for scaling up and out SLM in specific landscapes. With their very diverse contexts, capacities and possibilities, the countries presented how they used land degradation and SLM assessment tools and created evidence to include it into SLM decision-making processes, thus contributing to achive the LDN targets.

Adapting a flexible Decision Support Framework (DSF) that was developed by FAO and WOCAT, the implementing countries have put in place a systematic approach to embed from the onset of the project a strategy and action plan for policy, knowledge management and interventions on mainstreaming, scaling up and out of SLM. During the implementation stage, countries were able to identify opportunities and entry points for SLM policies and interventions for SLM scaling up and mainstreaming. The importance of the enabling conditions such as institutionalized inter-sectoral mechanisms and appropriated funding at the local and landscape levels are crucial to the success and project sustainability for broader SLM adoption beyond the project timeframe.

The country presentations were followed by a lively discussion with UNCCD focal points from the three presenting countries as well as Colombia, Argentina and the Philippines.