Desertification

Globally, disasters due to natural hazards takes an enormous toll in terms of human lives, destruction to crops and livelihoods, and economic losses. Disaster risk reduction (DRR) has therefore become a critical part of sustainable development strategies. Over the past decades, the role of healthy ecosystems in providing cheap, reliable protection against natural hazards has been increasingly recognized.

Globally, disasters due to natural hazards takes an enormous toll in terms of human lives, destruction to crops and livelihoods, and economic losses. Disaster risk reduction (DRR) has therefore become a critical part of sustainable development strategies. Over the past decades, the role of healthy ecosystems in providing cheap, reliable protection against natural hazards has been increasingly recognized.

This paper highlights the climate change mitigation potential of the African drylands and lays out various paths towards adaptation which should be supported to reduce the vulnerability of dryland populations and increase their food security.

The purpose of this publication is to highlight the development challenges faced by people who live in drylands and to outline how these challenges can be tackled successfully. Covering about 40 percent of the world’s land surface, dryland is home to more than 2 billion people in nearly 100 countries, of which about half remains under poverty. It will be impossible to meet the Millennium Development Goals by 2015 if life does not improve for the poor people of the drylands.