The sixteenth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP16) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) will be the largest-ever meeting of UNCCD’s 197 Parties and the first to be held in the Middle East.
Droughts are becoming more frequent and intense, and they increased by 29 % since 2000. “We depend on land for our survival. Yet we treat it like dirt”, said UN Secretary-General António Guterres. COP16 will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from 2 to 13 December 2024, and it represents an opportunity to raise global ambition and accelerate action on land and drought resilience.
One of the main themes of COP16 will be resilience against escalating threats from land degradation, desertification, drought, water scarcity and sand and dust storms. Resilience Day, hosted on 10 December, will focus on proactive approaches — like early warning systems and nature-based solutions — to build resilience in ecosystems and societies, protect vulnerable populations, and restore degraded lands.
Find WMO and GWP at COP16!
At COP16, WMO will present the main conclusions and recommendations of the Drought Resilience +10 Conference. The WMO delegation will also showcase progress in warnings and forecasts of sand and dust storms and highlight the need for greater international cooperation against this major environmental and health hazard.
GWP’s planned events at COP16 reflect a multifaceted approach to drought management and resilience-building. Through these sessions, GWP aims to strengthen collaborative efforts and highlight the essential role of multi-stakeholder partnerships in advancing resilience to land degradation and drought. These efforts are crucial to achieving COP16’s goals of enhancing drought preparedness, building resilient communities, and promoting sustainable land management practices.
WMO and GWP events are listed below (Arabia Standard Time):
4 DECEMBER
- Financing the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem (WEFE) nexus to combat desertification, drought and land degradation
11:00-12:30, location: ICESCO’s Pavilion, Blue Zone
GWP
6 DECEMBER
- Global Water Partnership Letting experience speak: Drought resilience lessons from experience through South-North learning
18:00–19:30, location: MET-08, Side Event
WMO – GWP
9 DECEMBER
- Digital technologies: A boon for drought management
10:00-11:00, location: Blue Zone, Restoration Pavilion, WMO - Introducing The Drought Tracker, a pilot crowdsourcing tool for monitoring drought impacts and conditions in Africa
18:00-19:30, location: MET05; GWP
10 DECEMBER – Resilience Day
- ADPC Empowering Resilience: Innovative Strategies for Drought Risk Management and Mitigation
09:00–10:30, Location: MET-01, Side Event, WMO – GWP - Reviving the Earth: Digital Transformation in combatting desertification and water challenges
10:00 – 11:00, location: Blue Zone, Restoration Pavilion, WMO - Resilience through Early Warning Systems
11:00-12:30, location: MET-33, WMO – GWP - Building Resilience to Hydro-Climatic Events
11:00-13:00, location: UNCCD COP16 Green Zone Pavilion 4, WMO – GWP - Catalyzing Drought Resilience: The Integrated Drought Management Programme
15:30-17:00. Location: MET-07, Side Event, WMO – GWP - Collaboration for impact on desertification: implementing the UN System-wide Strategy for Water and Sanitation
15:30 – 17:00, location: MET-06, Side Event, GWP - Outcomes of Drought Resilience +10 Conference: From Geneva to Riyadh and Beyond
18:00 – 19:30, location: MET-05, Side Event, WMO - United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) UN Coalition to Combat Sand and Dust Storms: Resilient Actions and Commitments for Combating SDS
18:00 – 19:30, location: MET-08
11 DECEMBER
- Launch of the UNCCD Communities of Learning and Practice on Drought Management
9:00-10:30, location: MET-04, GWP