Just before noon in Satara, a remote village in Niger’s southwestern Tillaberi region, the thermometer is already hovering near 40°C.
Women’s land rights are in the spotlight ahead of the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought, observed on 17 June, at events around the world, from Kenya to Viet Nam, including a high-level event at UN Headquarters in New York on Friday.
Land degradation from climate change and the expansion of agriculture, cities and infrastructure “undermines the well-being of 3.2 billion people”, the UN chief said on Wednesday in his message for World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought.
The UN Secretary-General has called for “a new contract for nature” to address ongoing global challenges connected to land degradation, such as forced migration, hunger and climate change.
Approximately 12 million hectares of productive land is degraded every year, according to the United Nations.
On World Day to Combat Desertification the UN is highlighting the importance of land to sustain life on Earth.
To find out more about this issue, Joshua Mmali spoke with Louise Baker, a senior adviser at the UN Convention to Combat Desertification.
She first spoke about this year’s theme of the day.
Duration: 4’57”
