International forum links desertification to poverty

Environmentalists and government officials have produced a unified position among countries most affected by desertification following a recent four-day international forum in Cape Verde's capital, Praia, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) reported on Monday. The 'Praia Declaration,' which will be presented at the World Summit on Sustainable Development to be held in August in Johannesburg, South Africa, says, "The poverty nexus is tied with desertification and drought in a vicious circle characterised by land degradation and loss of resources." The declaration recommended that the summit consider fighting desertification and promoting natural resources management as a main strategy to reduce poverty. It also urged more cooperation at subregional and regional levels to ensure cross-border sharing of skills and resources in the management of arid ecosystems. UNDP Resident Representative in Cape Verde Joseph Byll-Cataria said it was "evident that arid countries are the ones most affected by poverty". During the 5-8 March meeting, environmentalist and government officials from some 60 countries discussed implementation of the 1994 UN Convention to Combat Desertification and its relationship to the fight against poverty. Over 170 countries are now parties to the document. The forum, a forerunner to the Johannesburg meeting, was organised by the Cape Verdean government, UNDP and the UN convention’s secretariat.