World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought: Combating Land Degradation for Sustainable Agriculture

Up to one quarter of the world's surface is covered by dryland areas. The fragile environment of these areas is under serious threat - deserts are spreading at an alarming rate, and drought increasingly prevalent. The UN Convention to Combat Desertification is a unique instrument that has brought attention to land degradation in the drylands where exist some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and people in the world. The 2008 theme of the Day is “Combating Land Degradation for Sustainable Agriculture.”