NEW DELHI: The seventeenth session of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) conference concluded in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, on Friday by presenting a new global architecture for drought resilience that will help countries bridge the gap between plans and implementation.Multiple new initiatives were announced during the 12-day conference (COP17). They include $1.3 billion in new and pipeline finance for land restoration and strengthening drought resilience in vulnerable countries.These initiatives — the world’s first Drought Resilience Index (DRI) and the Drought Resilience Investment Facility (DRIF) — will help countries in assessing their capacity to anticipate, prepare for and adapt to drought, and unlock much larger flows of institutional and private finance for projects that strengthen water security, sustainable agriculture, nature-based solutions and land restoration.DRI’s technical monitoring metrics will enable countries to identify vulnerabilities and inform more effective policies and investments. Its new AI-powered features can help policymakers, technical experts and the public interpret complex data and turn it into practical insights.
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DRIF, on the other hand, aims to mobilise up to $400 million in public and private capital for drought resilience. The facility, launched by UNCCD and Luxembourg, will use public capital to reduce investment risks.“We came to Ulaanbaatar saying that COP17 must be a COP of implementation. We leave with more of the architecture needed to make that possible: political decisions, stronger science, innovative financing mechanisms, investment pipelines and partnerships that can move solutions to scale,” said UNCCD executive secretary Yasmine Fouad.The conference took place against a stark global backdrop as up to 40 percent of the world’s land is degraded, while countries have committed to restoring more than one billion hectares, including 26 million hectares by India, by 2030. India was represented by a team led by Union environment minister Bhupender Yadav at COP17.