Closing Media Briefing - Press Conference, UNCCD COP17

Play the trailer of the movie, 'Bewafaa Sii Wafaa'. Good afternoon everyone and welcome to the closing press conference of the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties at the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, COP17. We are meeting on the final day of COP17 as parties continue their work to conclude the negotiations here in Ulaanbaatar. Over the past two weeks, COP17 has brought together governments and stakeholders from around the world to advance discussions and actions on land degradation, desertification and drought. Alongside the negotiations, we have also seen a number of important announcements and initiatives, particularly around rangelands and pastoralists, drought resilience, finance for land restoration and healthy soil and food systems. We will first hear opening remarks from our three speakers before opening the floor for questions. Joining us today, Her Excellency Batsegmaa Batmunkh, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia and President of UNCCD COP17, Yasmin Fouad, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of United Nations Convention to combat desertification, and His Excellency Sandbag Ochir Tsand, Minister of Environment and Climate Change of Mongolia and Chair of the National Committee for the Organization of UNCCD COP17. Your Excellency, COP17 President, may I invite you to take the floor?

Good evening to you all. I extend you best greetings on this auspicious evening to all the representatives gathered here. Mongolia successfully hosted the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. And today marks the last day to conclude all the decisions. And after this press conference, I will also convene the plenary session to conclude all the decisions of the UNCCD COP17. To sum up, I would like to emphasize the successful hosting of the UNCCD COP17 by Mongolia. It is a great honor and privilege to Mongolia to host this important conference. and to testify Mongolia's reputation and international standing. And this marked the fourth time that a session of the UNCITF COP has been held in Asia. There have been a total of 34 decisions And I would like to emphasize one of the important decisions to commend and extend the appreciation to the people and government of Mongolia, decision initiated by the government of Algeria. and which also commends Mongolia's initiative to adopt the Ulaanbaatar Declaration as the outcome of this COP17. And also there have been several decisions that were contentious, but finally the parties have come to a consensus on several issues. most significantly, the future strategic framework of the convention and draft. And as presidency, Mongolia has successfully facilitated talks and negotiations on 14 important decisions. And Mongolia has also made efforts to convene group contacts, contact groups, and small group meetings. And throughout the COP17, there have been many blocked issues, including gender issues, migration, and drought. And Mongolia has made every effort to activate the discussion so that we can cooperate the important issues to agenda items and decisions. From the four blocked agenda items, The four agenda items are moving from COP17 to COP18. And also I would like to commend the efforts of Mongolian officials worked as part of the Mongolia's presidency of COP17. There have been many complex and contentious issues and Mongolia worked diligently to work on issues to have consensus and facilitate open and transparent discussions among the parties. And it was very important for us to facilitate that the talks were continued and did not go into deadlocks. And also Mongolia established and actively worked with the Friends of the Chair group comprising of important parties to facilitate dialogue. And there are three important committees, Committee of the Whole, the Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention, the Committee on Science and Technology. And during the COP17, the bureaus, the contact groups and the committees work diligently and hard to have the negotiations, the discussions of all the relevant parties so that they can move the agenda to the plenary session of the COP17. And there have been many draft documents, draft decisions negotiated and discussed during the COP17 and during the first week, There have been many technical discussions on the draft items and many representatives and officials from the ministries, agencies and the UNCCD Secretariat discussed on the technical issues in the draft decisions. And starting from the August 24th, we initiated the high level segment with thematic days. And during that high level segment, we hosted many ministers, deputy ministers and state secretaries of environment of all the parties. And as president of the COP17, chairing the committees and facilitating the nine vice presidents working under the presidency and organizing the bureau and contact group meetings were very essential to the successful hosting of COP17. And the COP17 conference was essential for Mongolia's reputation and international standing. And I would like to emphasize the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Environment's efforts were very crucial to the successful hosting. The connection and cooperation between all these parties were very important. And Mongolia, based on its past successful successes and achievements on the international arena, we worked diligently and made every effort to conclude the contentious issues during COP17. And as the president, I would like to emphasized that we worked hard to make sure that all the parties could make their standings on these issues so that the discussions were transparent and open and consensus driven. So I worked as the president of the COP17 and my colleague Minister Sandagochir of Environment and climate change worked as the chair of the national committee of the UNCCD COP17. And I would like to commend my colleagues, Mr. Sander Gocher's efforts to organize and mobilize the efforts and work of all the governmental officials and non-governmental people's participation to successfully organize this COP17, as well as introduced the government's national agenda and programs to the all parties. And as the president, it was important for the presidency of Mongolia to be to be open so that we could facilitate all the talks to be open, transparent, inclusive and consensus driven. And to sum up the COP17, I would like to briefly make a press statement. Thank you very much for your attention.

Yasmeen Fouad. Please, madam.

Thank you very much, Yazan. Let me start once again, as this is the closing press conference. by thanking the government of Mongolia, starting by His Excellency the President and the Prime Minister, those Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Madam Mummuk, and Minister of Environment, Minister Tsint, Minister of Agriculture, Culture and Tourism and Sports, Finance, State Secretary, and all those as Her Excellency COP17 President indicated, were engaged in that and definitely Deputy Minister of Environment. Thank you for all your support and the State Secretary of Environment as well. The COP17 President has articulated how we moved forward on the logistic, on the negotiations. Thank you very much for your support, commitment, leadership and your kind, calm nature that we were able to move things forward with the parties at a very critical time. But if I'm going to articulate what Her Excellency the Minister, COP17 President had indicated, I'd say the following. Ulaanbaatar COP17 gave us the pieces of the architecture of the implementation of the UNCCD. and how that can happen. The first week of this COP was really magnificent, not in the opening in August 17, but was before that. Again and again, I commend the government and everyone who bring to this country the Global Pastoralist Gathering Conference. This was a very strong start because we simply said it is the people for the people and by the people. In the International Year of Rangeland and Pastoralists, more than 100 countries came here. over two days in order to fill in their needs and priorities for their voices to be heard, to submit the declaration to the COP president as well as to myself. And now the declaration is on the website. But that's not enough because when I indicated that this COP is a COP of implementation for the first week, we've been listening. There were some agenda items blocked thanks to the COP presidency for unblocking those parts and moving, but thanks to the parties, because this is very important. Reaching consensus does not mean that we're not different. Reaching consensus meaning that we're able to reach a common ground that would let us move. And that's the beauty, but the challenge as well for the multilateral system. For this COP implementation would line the center of the rangeland as a flagship with the finance, the 1.29 billion that came as a start, but also around some other issues that would be important, such as sustainable agriculture and healthy soil and sand and dust storm, which is also one thing that Mongolia and Central Asia is important for them. And we cannot do that without finance. So the private sector story and its engagement with the resource mobilization decisions bring the tools to us. But that's not only the ambition we would like to see. The ambition came into implementation when we also again and again heard the women, the youth, the indigenous people in the local communities. I'm so proud that regardless that the agenda item was blocked that in Alam Batar for the first time the indigenous people caucus and the local communities caucus and her self the president being the woman and I being the woman attended the gender caucus and we will continue moving that agenda forward because simply without the woman we will not be able to restore land restore hope restore life or restore even our children and grandchildren and we will keep pushing on that agenda the last thing I would to say is, besides thanking the government of Mongolia, I'd like to say that our facilitators, our co-chairs for the three governing bodies had done a magnificent job, and so is the friends of the presidency from the different countries, but also allowing to thank a very limited team of the secretariat of the UNCCD that has been working day and night, and without them, I don't think that we would have come to the closing of a press conference as well as to a closing plenary they're still stuck there with the editing and reformulation but I'm sure that without them I wouldn't have been an executive secretary sitting here proud being a woman and that we wouldn't all celebrate what we will be celebrating after the plenary ready for any questions and I thank you all very much.

Thank you very much, Madam Executive Secretary. I now give the floor to Your Excellency Sandag Orkhid Sand, Minister of Environment and Climate Change of Mongolia.

First of all, Mongolia successfully hosted the 17th session of Conference of the Parties, UNCCD COP17. And also representatives of media and reporters, I would like to gratitude my thanks to you. 196 countries, so basically every country has direction for international communities future cooperation on land degradation, desertification and drought. So we have been successfully One of the most important outcomes for us was a broad support extended by parties, international organizations, the private sector and civil society organizations to the SEB action agenda, the policy legacy of conference. We will work consistently to implement initiative which connects sustainable rangeland management into integrated water and land management and nature-based solutions for sustainable infrastructure with science and policy and investment. So, 447 events were held in Blue Zone, 309 events were held in the green zone, bringing total across both zones to 756. I would like to emphasize one point. The scale of COP17 cannot be measured solely by the number of discussions held in conference rooms. One of the conference's most important strength was the collaboration among governments, international organizations, the scientific community, civil society, business, local communities, young people and women who shared their experience, knowledge and proposed solutions. I believe some of COP70's most important events were made in the Aris land restoration in finance globally, approximately, uh, 355 billion investments needed each year to address land degradation, desertification and drought. At present, however, only 77 billion US dollar is being mobilized. COP17 therefore did more than simply state that more finance is needed. It is focused on expanding cooperation among governments, the private sector, international organizations and financial institutions, converting that cooperation into results and measurable progress, and identifying how land can be used wisely and efficiently while reducing, ultimately neutralizing land degradation. The succession, the success of COP17 is reflected in commitments by financing institutions to support efforts to combat desertification and mitigate climate change backed by agreements concluded during the conference. In particular, 18 billion US dollar was committed globally to achieve land degradation neutrality and combat acidification. In Mongolia, agreements and memoranda of understanding have been concluded for projects and programs worth a total of 1.48 billion US dollar, which is 5 billion tugriks. In brief, these include 200 million euro from the European Investment Bank, 100 million US dollar from the World Bank, 130 million US dollar from mining companies for activities including planting, sexual across 5,000 hectares and rehabilitating degraded land. 50 million US dollar agreement involving Mongolian Green Finance Corporation and ComBank. Also during the COP17, Mayor's Forum was held. During Forum, Office of Governor of Capital City successfully concluded agreements worth 400 million USOL in cooperation with Global Green Growth Institute, BYD, World Bank and the United Nations. These agreements aim to reduce number of coal burning chimneys in GUR districts, lower coal consumption, promote renewable energy and develop roads and green spaces. And also, Mongolia will develop 100 163 megawatt green artificial intelligence data center attracting major investments that combines renewable energy with sustainable digital infrastructure. Also in addition, In the green zone, 53 million, 53 Mongolian organizations initiated cooperation with the international and domestic partners opening up investment opportunities totaling 38 billion Mongolian tugrik. These investments directly support Mongolia's core objectives of combating desertification and mitigating climate change. They will also deliver tangible benefits by enabling private enterprises to expand, supporting business developments in rural areas, increasing household incomes and improving livelihoods. Over 12 days of conference, the blue zone welcomed 20,000 participants, while green zone recorded 85,000 visitors, including repeat entries. Overall, more than 110,000 visits by the guests and delegates were recorded. Across the blue and green zones, 3,000 people, including public, private sector, personal service workers, volunteers, and students and young people worked to deliver conference. In addition, more than 14,000 bed nights generating 5.4 billion, while food service providers at conference venues served 87,000 guest delegate visits, including repeated visits. In addition, more than 141,000 tourists visited Mongolia in August 2026. the month in which COP17 was held. As host country, Mongolia worked diligently to fulfill its responsibilities for COP17. We extend our sincere gratitude to the Secretariat of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, United Nations entities, international and regional organizations, development partners, participating countries, civil society, business sector, scientific institutions, media organizations, young people and local communities and their support and cooperation. During Mongolia's two year COP17 presidency, we will strengthen international partnerships and ensure inclusive participation of all parties as we work to turn the COP17 theme into action. Also, I would like to gratitude my thanks to President Batsitsik. Restoring land, restoring hope.

Okay, now we will open the floor for questions. Please, when I indicate you, wait for the mic. Please say your name, which organization, and also tell us who you're addressing your question for. The floor is open. The lady in the fourth row.

Good evening. Thank you very much for the floor. I'm representing UNCCD civil society organizations panel. First, let me start with the sharing my sincere appreciation and gratitude to the Mongolia and the presidency for organizing this conference of parties with the highest quality. Thank you very much for this. If it's possible, could you please also update us about the status of agenda item about the civil society organizations participation in the convention, including participation of indigenous peoples, local communities, pastoralist people, women and youth? Thank you very much.

Who is the question for?

For Madam Executive Secretary.

Thank you.

So, as I mentioned, again, they are still part of this convention. They are there in the text of the convention, and it's not only the text, if you attended. the different events, we have already convened the high level dialogue for the civil society, indigenous people, local community and gender caucus and youth. And the report and the result of that, we utilized it to work more on the terms of reference on each of them. That would be part of the report of this conference and we're moving with the same titles as part of the work program and the agenda to COP18. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Any other questions? The lady in the second row, please. I think the... Please, can you pass the mic to the... Yeah, thank you.

The cement... The cement has this culture.

I'm a reporter from Elch News. So I would like, first of all, I would like to say my express my gratitude for the COP17 organizers. So I have a question for Mr. Sandagchur. So what is the outcome from this COP17 from the Mongolian part. So as you mentioned before, 5 billion Mongolian Tugrik was earned from COP17. So what was the result of hosting COP17? So also by hosting COP17, what is your plan to mitigate land desertification and degradation.

Sir, COP. COP 16. So, five billion during the COP 16. Um so, we were funded by cops 16, 5 billion Mongolian Tugriks. on the 25th of August, sustainable forest management and renewable energy. 100 million from the World Bank. So this COP was pretty much The first one to discuss about mining problems, land degradation, water management. When it comes to those areas, mining companies are affecting in those fields. So as a responsibility, as Mongolia is heavily influenced by mining industry, So for the first time, COP17, we had negotiations with mining companies. So mining companies, they had initiatives to land restoration and also water management in those areas. For example, a Mongolian company, Nomin, for the first time, they made a green gate for the wildlife in the mountain Bogd, which was protected over 700 years. So this is for Mongolia, it's very first time making this green gateway for wildlife. So this is a case government and private sectors came together. 130 million million of land restoration and projects to mitigate land degradation for those 12 days. So many private sectors promise to have responsible. So also during the 50 million USD agreement involving Mongolian Green Finance Corporation and Canbank. So as I mentioned before, 400 million USD in cooperation with the Global Green Growth Institute and World Bank and United Nations in order to reduce number of coal burning chimneys in green districts lower coal consumption, promote renewable energy and develop roads and green spaces. So those projects will be funded. So two days ago, if you notice, Mongolian government and cooperating with Mongolian and international private sectors. So, uh, agreement, uh, ten companies, 863 megawatts energy efficient green data center for artificial intelligence. with more than 10 companies so if you uh see the total amount of the fund it's quite high so um roughly 16 billion US dollar so it's going to rise so soon so those are the direct Investments to Mongolia so to this framework. So 81% of the rangeland is said is face desertification. So we will use this fund to mitigate desertification. So, it's not we have agreements today and we will have direct implementation tomorrow. So, government and private sectors, we will cooperate together in order to mitigate the degradation. So Rio, COP Rio, 12, they got a 12 billion US dollar fund. So just because we have the fund, it doesn't mean we can end the desertification. So as a landlocked country, and also as a dry country and also as a country facing droughts. For us, this hosting COP17 is a really big opportunity and advantage. So this range land management is a critical issue for us Mongolians as our food and clothes based on our food, our soil. So we're going to have this. Also another advantage of hosting COP17 is we are advocating Mongolia and also showing the world that who are Mongolians. So during this 12 days, we had opportunity to introduce ourselves to the world. So just because COP has ended doesn't mean our project is going to end. So next two years, we will have initiatives and also sustainable initiative in order to mitigate desertification and degrading land. Also, we are, the COP17 is becoming the bridge from Mongolia with the Mongolian government and the private sectors and internationally.

Yasmin, I have two questions. The first question is on the international level, we believe that there has been a huge expectation about the drought resilience initiative, which was championed hugely by Arab countries, especially during the COP16. COP16 was very successful conference. And I want to ask, you know, well, could you please share the progress that made so far on the draft resilience initiative? And the second question is, after 2030, What will happen? Are we talking about the whole new way of method of handling the desertification, the degradation of land, or what needs to be changed fundamentally to the global approach to handling these problems? Thank you.

Thank you very much. The drought resilience. as I mentioned, COP16 has put that on the global agenda. There was launching of what's called Riyadh Global Drought Resilience Partnership that had the 12 billion mobilized from the Arab Coordination Group. Over the past year, three things were already finalized. First, the compilation of the steering committee, including the member states that will be beneficiary from the RGTRP. Secondly, the governance document and the fund establishment of the multilateral trust fund and the secretariat and where the UNCCD will be hosting the secretariat of the RGTRP. And last is the final agreement that should be signed towards the end of this year, expected operationalization by 2027, where we will have the call for proposal. However, part of that fund that amounts around 600 million has already been mobilized to some of the African countries to start converting their drought management plan into drought investment plan. But because we know that this is a public financing, so we need the private sector. The secretariat, the UNCCD has engaged with Luxembourg on an ambitious initiative of launching and signing what's called the drought resilience investment facility that is mainly for the private sector to de-risk the capital to mitigate the impact of drought. So when a country would like to start implementing a project from its plan, there will be two sources, one source that is a public finance and when it comes to the private sector that will be leveraged through the drift as what will be after 2030. Right now we are still in the process in what's called the working group for the future strategic framework for the post 2030. These are looking at the LDN, the targets, how can we move forward and how best can the 50% of restoring the degraded land could be met. What should be different two things. First of all, that we need to align the policies with the finance because we're not lacking solutions, we're lacking that kind of alignment. Secondly, which is more important, we need to change the narrative around the financial architecture around land, meaning that that land piece should be investable, should be bankable. And in order to do that, the business for land hub is the enabler where we are opening that. I'm so happy that the government of Mongolia has already operationalized its business through its Business Council of Mongolia, the business for land hub, other countries have done so and we are continuing to push on that. So changing the architecture around finance in this convention should meet the ambition of the targets that will be there for the post-2030. Thank you.

Thank you. We have time for one, maybe two questions, please, lady in the first row, and then I'll come to you and then.

Hello, I'm Shakun from Groundwork in India. My question is to Madam Executive Secretary. In the draft agenda, there was a decision that drought will now be a standalone item. Can you please explain the significance of this? Was it earlier bundled with other items and what actually will change after this?

So the agenda, the drought is always a standalone. It's part of the agenda items of this conference and will continue to be a standalone agenda item within our process. The only thing that we're trying to bring here is how can we continue the discussion on the global instrument for drought? And this has been moved to COP18, but the means of implementation had been unidentified in the decision.

Thank you for last question. The lady in the third row in blue, please. Please remember to say where you're from because the last two we forgot.

So there's some unclear issues. My name is Sara Mundak. I am from the Unlimited Step NGO. There are some unclear issues that I'm left with. Why? Because especially for I would like to ask Miss Yasmin Foud, executive secretary, and COP18, after two years, there will be COP18 and civil society organizations, youth, indigenous people, herders, And if they would be outside of the agenda, if they would be left out of the agenda, what happens then if UNCCD is some kind of measures, if they keep leaving us behind, it's contradicting the UN principle to not leave anyone behind. So we should be actually uniting under this principle and we don't want to be left out of this convention and this is rather pity for us.

Procedurally, the indigenous people, the local community, the gender and the youth, I hope you will be putting the translation so that you get the full answer, I thank you very much, are part of this agenda and they are not out. We have COP16 decision that we are continuing with that decision to COP18. Again, when you say they're out, this means that on the first day, The UNCCD COP17 conference did not convene discussion workshops or dialogues with indigenous people, local community, gender and youth. And this was not the case. We had those meetings on the first week On the second week, we had the land and people day, we kept all that, and the result will be inside the report of this conference. So they are part of that. Going to COP18, again, the same agenda items will be in COP18. Decision of COP16 is there, the text is there, and the report of COP17. I hope I made myself clear. Thank.

Thank you very much everybody. This brings us to the end of the COP17 closing press conference. Thank you to our distinguished speakers and thank you to the members of the press, of them who joined us here and covered this press conference. The UNCCD communications team remains available for any follow-up questions, interview requests or additional information. Thank you very much.