(2nd Meeting) Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention - UNCCD COP17

I call to order the second meeting of the Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention. Please delegates take your seats because I will now invite the Committee to continue its consideration of agenda item two entitled Effective implementation of the Convention at national, subregional and regional levels. The documents before the committee are listed in today's journal and in the app. We will turn to sub-item D entitled development and promotion of activities for targeted capacity building to further the implementation of the convention. I will now give the floor to a representative of the UNCCD secretariat to introduce the documents. You have the floor.

Thank you, Chair. Distinguished delegates, I have the honor to introduce document ICCD/CRC/24/3, which corresponds to the draft decision contained in chapter two of document ICCD/CRC/24/5. The document ICCD/CRC24/3 is entitled Promotion of Capacity Building to Further the Implementation of the Convention. Pursuant to decision two, COP16, the Secretariat in collaboration with the global mechanism and relevant partners have continued to implement targeted capacity building to support the effective implementation of the convention. Progress has been made in support of the 2026 national reporting process, the second phase of the land degradation neutrality target setting program, which is TSP 2.0, gender responsive capacity building under the gender action plan, and the expansion of digital tools, including the use of earth observation and artificial intelligence. The document reports on activities implemented by the secretariats and the global mechanism, as well as complementary efforts by the Group of 20 Global Land Initiative, or G20 GLI, which spans education outreach, technical cooperation, partnership-based capacity building, targeted support for national reporting, LDN TSB 2.0, drought, and other policy frameworks. Building on this official document, the committee will hold an interactive dialogue entitled Scaling Up Capacity Development for Transformative Change, providing a practical illustration through selected examples of capacity building in action. Contributions will be provided by the G20 GLI, the Global Policy Advocacy and Regional Cooperation Unit of the Secretariat and the Global Mechanism. Their presentations will be followed by an exchange with parties and observers. The dialogue aims to inform future priorities, delivery modalities, partnerships, the emerging capacity building strategy and the annual work program subject to the availability of resources. Madam Chair, distinguished delegates, I am joined on the podium by representatives of the G20 GLI, the Secretariat and the global mechanism who will contribute to this interactive dialogue. Thank you.

I think the representative of the UNCCD secretariat. I will now give the floor to Miss Wagaki Vishnevsky on the G20 Global Land Initiative.

Thank you, Chair. think I need the presentation, please. Thank you, Chair. So the G20 Global Land Initiative has a big mandate, which is to reduce degraded land by 50% by 2040. One of the things that has driven the work of the G20 Global Land Initiative in this regard is to scale resources in order to scale restoration. we're constantly reminded that we need to remember that scaling one, you know, restoration by a hectare or two is not sufficient. We have a billion hectares to restore by 2030 and half of that, I think by 2040. So we approach the work of capacity building, um, in three, in, in, in, in several areas, but I just will highlight a few for you to see the kind of work we've done. One of the things we realized is that we don't have enough graduates coming from universities that work with the land and that understand what land restoration is or exactly what we're doing. So we're looking at scaling the number of graduates or people coming from school that understand this issue. And so we have university courses that we've developed. We also recognized very early on that at the national level, a lot of the countries that have legislation at the national level on land restoration or land degradation, addressing land degradation, are able to implement faster than countries that have no legislation. And so we have developed a special academy called the Global Change Maker Academy for parliamentarians, where every year we're bringing them to understand to the academy where they're taught or they learn about the convention, its relation to other conventions and what restoration means and what kind of legislation is needed. But they also learn where the future is going in terms of how they need to think about legislation. That academy, by the way, is taking place alongside this COP next week. Third, we are looking at young people because for G20, the generation that will be here by 2040 is not us. We focus a lot on what we call Gen. Z, and they are at a very different place than where we are. And so we are looking at how do we engage them from where they stand. And so one of the things we've developed is something called the startups in land restoration, which has gained a lot of traction and which is actually happening at national level in many countries. The fourth thing we recognize in terms of government demand was the use of technology to map, to monitor what is happening on the ground. So we've developed a platform that enables us to provide that kind of monitoring with partners across the world that are able to support any country in the world that wishes to be involved or to use geospatial planning. And then the last thing we've recognized is the need for public outreach, because until the public buys into what we're doing, we're not going to make a big difference. What does that mean for capacity building? For us, we want to align restoration with what stakeholders want. And some of the things we have realized is land restoration has been happening very much on a voluntary basis, very much funded by governments in a way that there's no return. And what a lot of governments are looking for is to build economies, is to create jobs, is to optimize the resources they have. So a lot of the activities that we are doing are aimed at ensuring we can optimize resource use, whether we are using geospatial mapping to ensure that We can track where restoration is happening, where it could be happening faster, where the resources are being provided and where there are no resources. All of these things are able to be assessed using these tools. In terms of job centered youth, we have found that a lot of innovations are coming from young people, innovations that deal with problems that they are experiencing in their communities. So if you're looking at building capacity, we need to think what are the solutions that young people are bringing to the table and how can we support them? Because the biggest challenge for them has been once they identify a technology and once they identify a mechanism for actually changing that to make it usable, they don't have the resources to support it. The most important thing I would hope we take away today is that the young people are actually asking for new models of how we do business, new models of how we run the economy, and they're providing some of those solutions. But we then need to back up those solutions with support. So the startups that they're coming up with are solutions that address the needs that youth are asking for, but then we need as an institution to provide the mechanism and the environment for them to grow them. Lastly, we are looking at the restoration economy because we recognize that until land restoration provides a resource base and it becomes an income generating tool, it will not be very easy for the rest of the government sectors to kind of take on and support the initiatives that come under land restoration. The last thing that we are grappling with, and this is what my colleague will be speaking about, is artificial intelligence. And in this case, we're looking at artificial intelligence from two perspectives, in terms of it driving land restoration and how we can use it, but on the other hand, in terms of the AI land footprint. Chair, that is my presentation, thank you.

Thank you very much, Ms. Wisniewski. I will now give the floor to Mr. Murali Tumarukudi of the G20 Global Land Initiative, please you have the floor.

Thank you, Chair. Thank you, my colleague, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen. As my colleague mentioned, I would like to delve on the question of artificial intelligence as it applies to land restoration, as it applies to capacity building. When we at the G20 Global Land Initiative started looking at the mandate which was given to us by the G20 which is to achieve 50% reduction in degraded land by 2040. We looked at the pool of human resources available to achieve this restoration. We looked at the commitments globally made by parties to achieve restoration. As of 2025, Parties are committed between various processes, the Bonn Challenge, the LDN process, the CBD process and UNFCCC process, 1.2 billion hectares of land to be restored. But when you look at the pool of experts available to do this, we are looking at something like 10,000 experts globally. The largest network of restoration professionals is still less than 10,000. Now, you cannot achieve 1.2 billion hectares of land to be restored with a pool of 10,000 restoration specialists. That's why we decided to scale at an absolutely massive scale, going initially to the university where land is a subject matter of discussion, such as agricultural universities, such as urban planning universities, such as mining universities, such as forestry universities. Wherever land is a domain of their learning, we are injecting those university curriculum. As we speak, we have already reached out to more than 1,200 universities. 600 of them has already started teaching land restoration from a curriculum which we have trained. We are currently working the massive open courses, online courses, working with the UN University to scale it to a million graduates outside the university system. We are going to work with major providers such as Coursera to make this training available free of cost to the community, be it government or private sector. It is in this context that we are looking at the question of artificial intelligence. We understand that at this point of time, artificial intelligence is a very hot topic and there are many concerns among people, including environmental concern. Artificial intelligence and data centers are causing huge energy footprint. It is causing huge water footprint, but it's also caused causing huge land footprint in three levels. The land needed for the data centers is most obvious, but that's the smallest of the footprint. The land being mined to create the critical minerals which go into the memory chips which go into the data centers is much bigger. Now there is a commitment from major AI companies that renewable energy will be used for data centers, which then could expand the footprint of land much beyond the data centers themselves. So we are currently embarking on a collaborative project with the International Telecommunication Union, with the International Renewable Energy Agency, the United Nations University, to first of all understand how land footprint is involved in AI, but also then build capacity within national governments to integrate it as a part of their national environmental impact assessment process. So that when a data center is being proposed, the national agencies should be able to do a lifecycle analysis of the land footprint of the AI and the data centers. We would of course make this available also to the civil society and also to the industry so that they can also do their own analysis. So this is one segment of AI. The second segment of AI is how can we use AI in assessing land restoration? We are now developing a model. As I said, we have 1.2 billion hectares of land which parties are already committed to restore. How do we prioritize? Where is the best bang for buck? What technologies could be used in which locations? And there is tremendous potential of the use of artificial intelligence. Working with UNEP and the Global Resource Information Directorate in Geneva, we have looked at how abandoned mining sites can be captured by machine learning so that we can identify those sites which can be restored as a matter of priority. Once again, we want to scale it globally and bring this approach to the parties, to the civil society and to the restoration economy. And finally, We also believe that AI itself can be a tool for capacity building. In addition to training experts, human beings, in the parties in civil society and the industry, there is also a potential to create AI agents who themselves can be the experts to support each of these above parties. So currently we are working on developing such AI agents who can be used, who can be trained with the best of the technology, who can be trained in specific domains, who can be deployed at scale, who can be deployed in multiple languages, who can be constantly updated, almost updated in real time. With this combined effort of training AI agents and deploying it at scale, we expect that we will be able to bring the best of the knowledge to desktop and the mobiles of every person who need that information in real time. Thank you.

I thank you and I thank the two representatives of the G20 Global Land Initiative. I will now give the floor to Mr. Daniel Segay of the UNCCD Secretariat. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Good morning, everyone. I'm in front of you now to present the Communities of Learning and Practice on Drought Management. I'm very humbled and also proud that we have gone very far with your support. And this is the Communities of Learning and Practice on Drought Management. We do it with a lot of partners, including the International Drought Resilience Alliance, Global Water Partnership, and a number of organizations, including the Integrated Drought Management Program. So the communities of learning and practice is created as a result of the UNCCD COP decision, decision 23 COP 15, where we presented the UNCCD drought toolbox. You wanted as parties, you wanted more interactive, you wanted all those who are interested on drought interact among each other. The knowledge is out there. It is very important for a peer learning knowledge platform. So as a result of that, we were able to create six communities, five communities of regions, including the Africa community of learning and practice, northern Mediterranean, central and eastern Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and a global community. And of course, this was based on what we have done in the UNCCD drought toolbox, which was launched at COP14. So it is more of an incremental approach trying to really look into how can we make sure that we scale up, we scale out all the solutions that are out there because there is a lot of knowledge. we need to make sure that it is available to those who are users of it. So the Drought Toolbox was, I think, get a lot of traction, but as a result of this community of learning and practice, we are trying to make sure that this is happening. So now I'm also happy to tell you that we have around 560 strong members with a lot of events that we are doing, a lot of content is available if you were to look into the UNCCD website with very, very limited resources that we were able to achieve. but at least there is a lot to learn from this community. And of course, the global community is one of them where we have chairs of around four of them, which are experts from all over the world. They keep putting a lot of knowledge products, blogs, articles, and a number of events on drought issues. And as you can also see that we are trying to also make sure that we have a lot of articles that are put and maybe also the knowledge frontier is also up to speed. And the global community, as I said, has a lot of members from all over the world. A lot of experts are involved with the platform. You can have a look at it yourself. And I'm also pleased to also give my warm thanks to the CLP co-chairs, who are a few of them in the room, who are doing this on a pro bono. They put their time. They are from all over the world, two co-chairs from each region, and we have four global community, and they meet every month to discuss what to put How can we make sure that we enhance development and this African, this global community, we are going to be meeting for the first time in person in this COP to devise kind of an annual plan for the next upcoming, but I'm very grateful for very bright and dedicated CLP co-chairs from all over the world. So yeah, as I said, in terms of gender, we have around 60% male and 36% female. And many of them are academic and professional organizations, civil societies involved with government and public agency, international organization in the private sector. So it is very, very inclusive. And I would very much like to invite everyone, of course, in terms of citizenship, we have people from Germany, Venezuela, Nigeria, until Sweden, Spain, Ghana, so I think the representation is also from, these are the top 20, but I think we have membership from around 120 countries. So as you can see, a lot of events, a lot of resources, and a lot of opportunities, blogs, and posts, and discussions are out there. What I learned is it's very important that we allow, we really promote some kind of exchange of learning and knowledge because this can inspire people to learn, to take the next step. And as you can see also, I think especially Latin America and the Caribbean is one of the growing because we started as a pilot for that region, but other regions are also catching up. We have around 760 now. So a lot of contents by communities of practice. What is very important that I also wanted to announce is that we have done a lot of effort to make sure that we have courses on drought risk and impact assessment with involvement of many UN, non-UN research organizations from all over the world. We cannot be exhaustive, but we have tried to make sure that all of these organizations, all of these experts from around the world are involved in providing the courses. So we have put this drought risk and impact assessment course. We launched it at CRIC 23 in Panama. And this drought risk mitigation and preparedness and response is going to be launched in the framework of this COP and the side event. You are welcome to attend that event. Of course, as you can see, we have a lot of organizations which are involved as course contributors. I would just like to invite you to enroll into these courses. So far we have around 800 within only three, four months who are enrolled and about 60 of them just completed the course. And institutions which are heavily involved are UNCCD, IDMP, the Integrated Drought Management Program, GWP, WMO in the International Drought Resilience Alliance. But as you could see from the logos, a lot of them. And we have six modules, 32 lessons and a lot of content in there. The other one that we are going to be launched in this scope is also this drought risk mitigation preparedness and response. For those of you who have been following this drought risk assessment center, I think we have been talking about three pillars, monitoring and early warning, which was already done by WMO a long time back. And now we have these two. So with the three core pillars, which are in the CLP, I think you will be well equipped to discuss drought. So I think it's very important that you also, I just invite you to enroll because we have involved a lot of experts from a number of partner organizations. And I would like to give you a few seconds just to scan this QR code also to enroll in this course, which is going to be launched and you are welcome to be one of the first to be enrolled. So we did a lot of photo competitions to make sure that all the knowledge out there is coming up, solutions that inspire change. We got around 100 submissions from 60 countries. We announced the winners on 17 June on the Drought Desertification Day. We did a lot of online exhibitions on this. This is the best way you can really harvest all the knowledge that is out there. What I'm impressed about as somebody working on drought issues is there are a lot of solutions out there which are at a small scale, which need to be upscaled and outscaled. And these kind of platforms can really make them visible for those who are going to be users. So we did also an online photo exhibition during the Drought and Desertification Day. And again, with these very, very limited resources, I think I'm proud of our CLP co-chairs and a number of the members who are able to help us to do this. We did a lot of webinars, more than 1,000 participants actively engaged in these discussions. We highlighted country experiences, practical solutions. So these were a lot of in-person events. We also did a lot of person events when we have the chance to look into, we are involved in World Water Week, for example, and Water for Food Global Conference. I think that happens also every other year. And case study competitions, we did also this. And this is all available on the CLP platform. Although two are announced winners because of resources, I think all those case study submissions deserve to be viewed because they are very, very interesting. And case studies, as you can see, around 44 case studies collected and you will be able to see them all in the CLP page. So the lessons learned is very important is relationships are a key asset. I think this is important also, I cannot preach the convert, you are a community in yourself, so I think trust, professional network and knowledge of who knows what, so that you know where to get from whom. Learning translates into action as a result of this kind of peer-to-peer knowledge. Participants have applied tools, methodologies and practices learned through this UNCCD process. And they also announced some of them, I was also very much encouraged to see them being some kind of small projects simply because of the CLP writing articles, just coming together to do some things together. So science policy. practice connections create impact as you could see the CLP is very much diverse in terms of its membership so I would like to use this opportunity to encourage you all to be members of this community of learning and practice because it is a growing community participation can be transformative I always say participation is ownership because if you participate in developing a tool, you own it, you want to make it to see it developing. So I think we want more engagement, more leadership in this. Social learning is not automatic, of course. We need to also put some resources, for example, from our CLP co-chairs, they put at least two days a month of their time pro bono for this community to grow. So way forward, we are going to be redesigning our engagement formats. I think this is very important that we shift from presentations from heavy meetings to participatory co-learning so that it's not a one-way approach, but we need to ensure that we have some case clinics, world cafes, poster fairs, and external experiential learning and other initiatives. We need to also build an inclusive intergenerational community. I think this was being highlighted by my colleagues from the global, from the G20. We have a youth also representative who is a CLP co-chair trying to bring all the youth. group for the UNCCD to come up forward for the CLP. Connect science, policy and practice. We need to also measure whether learning creates value. So we need to move beyond tracking participation. How many people have participated is important, but What is the uptake in terms of the knowledge? So this is the beauty of the CLP. We try to look into the quality. So upcoming activities, we are going to be strengthening drought policy and implementation process. We are going to be depending on resources, drought policy labs, for example, because more than 70 countries have now a national drought plan. So we are going to be looking into how can we exchange experiences among countries. technical regional workshops to address the science policy practice gap, some kind of drought lakes also so that we can develop a library of drought related laws, even including the drought AI language, generating knowledge networks that leverage local know-how into global insights. We are also trying to look into how we can identify and scale up innovative solutions. So a lot is going to be done and we are also hoping that we need the involvement of many of you here. And with this, I just wanted to thank Madam Chair.

Thank you very much, Mr. Tsengai from the UNCCD Secretariat. I will now give the floor to Ms. Catherine Mutambirwa of the Global Mechanism. Please, you have the floor.

Thank you, Chair. Distinguished delegates, on behalf of the Global Mechanism, I would like to share with you specific examples around some of the work that we are doing which aligns with our mandate. So as you know, the Global Mechanism, we mainly focus on supporting our country parties with resource mobilization, and our work is guided by decisions that are taken at the COP. and with this, in this regard, um, we'll look at, um, a few decisions that were taken at the last, uh, COP in Riyadh. So, um, our efforts are focused around capacity building on project, uh, development, program design, and access to finance. Also, um, capacity building related to how we can improve, um, intersectoral coordination with relevant sectors. policies and plans such as those related to finance and planning, agriculture, energy, water, infrastructure development and disaster risk management amongst others, as well as also strengthening countries parties ability to access, to engage with the private sector and innovative financing sources. So I will give a specific example of a capacity building program that we are currently designing and have already piloted in the Southern Africa region. This capacity building is inspired by capacity building training where we supported UNCCD country parties to participate in a climate investment funds, nature people and climate World Bank NBS investment training which focused on nature based solutions and was convened in Zambia in 2025. So we've also then designed a follow-up training in collaboration with the partners and since our mandate requests us to work with parties on designing large-scale programs we ensure that the capacity building programs we are designing are linked to the flagship initiatives that we are designing. In this particular case, it's contributing to the implementation of a Jeff funded Southern Africa Great Green Wall Accelerator Program. Uh and the objective of the project is to mobilize technical, political, and financial resources to implement the initiative to increase the resilience of people and ecosystems in the region. The capacity building program was funded by the Korea Forest Services through the Greening Drylands Partnership, which is focusing on supporting that region, as well as our BMZ funded partnership for project preparation and a project we are implementing in some of these countries funded by the African Development Bank. It was co-hosted by the government of South Africa as part of their G20 legacy and in their role as the interim chair of SADC, as well as the SADC Secretariat, regional economic community, the African Union Commission, and the African Development Bank. The program focused on all the 16 SADC countries and working with different sectors. So we included the UNCCD national focal points, the Great Green Wall focal points, the Jeff operational focal points, the GCF NDAs, ministries of finance and ministries of agriculture. In that region, it's also has about 15 river basins. So we also included the river basin organizations as well as regional subsidiary organizations such as the SETAC Business Council, SETAC Development Finance and Resource Center, as well as a number of regional, national, and international partners that we are partnering with in the development of this initiative. Also key to this training was also involvement of the private sector, where we engaged closely with our private sector in an innovative financing team. So the just to give you a snapshot of how the training evolved. So the first it was a five day training and the first day was focusing on understanding the regional challenges and introducing the NBS definitions by a number of partners such as the World Bank, IUCN and In day two, we focused on environmental and business case of nature-based solutions as cost-effective answers to these various challenges. So we looked at how to understand the costs and benefits of NBS compared to traditional grey approaches, as well as learn what type of data is needed to make an assessment of NBS costs and benefits. On the third day, we focused on looking at the financial instruments and role-playing exercise where our parties were learning how to pitch NBS to the private sector. So the learning objectives was to understand the financial instruments used to scale NBS projects and sustainably finance them for the long term. And here we used quite a number of case studies to explain, particularly in cases where they have been successful. and also an overview of revenue generating models in NBS and how to pitch NBS to the private sector. We had an exciting exercise where our delegates were taken through a pitching exercise and practiced how best and what different types of investors are looking for. Then the fourth and fifth days, again, to align with our mandate was then to use what the participants has learned to then develop regional and project, and regional and national project ideas linked to the flagship initiative, and also look at potential transboundary projects since we also had regional institutions represented. So in terms of now linking with our broader mandates, when we look at the Great Green Wall itself, what this type of capacity building does, it helps our country parties in terms of their financial structuring of projects. And here in the region, we have at least four projects now that have been approved that are all integrated in the sense that when we design one project, we make sure that there's a clear linkage with a preceding project in this case, and I think we presented this at the last CRIC where one of our key successes in the Zambezi watercourse where we have four operations there. The first major one funded by the African Development Bank, which then leverage resources from the climate investment funds and more recently two projects from the global environment facility. We also have about four projects linked to that investment. We're working again with several partners on a project targeted at the Adaptation Fund, the Green Climate Fund, as well as a regional project focusing on the Western Indian region. In all cases, we're working with several partners. but trying to ensure that we are coordinating our engagements and trying to make sure that we are looking at the landscapes in an integrated manner. So that was the specific example on Southern Africa, but just to highlight that we're also continuing to work in other regions. So here we have an example of the Great Green Wall in the Sahel, where they're more advanced in implementation than Southern Africa. And here we have also collaboration with the G20 Global Land Initiative. on engagement with harnessing green investment opportunities for young entrepreneurs. This training actually happened during the same week as the Great Green War on for Southern Africa. And here again, strengthening our engagement with private sector and working closely with parties to engage more on innovative financing. During the course of the two weeks of the COP, there are quite a number of side events linked to some of these initiatives. So I've put three of them on the slide. There's one that's led by the Global Environment Facility and the Climate Investment Fund, which will look at how we are collaborating on integrated landscape investments, as well as a great green wall high level meeting, which will be held on the 24th of August, where we will be looking at the continental ambitions of the great green wall initiative led by the African Union, African Development Bank, and the global mechanism. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much to Ms. Catherine Mutembarwa of the Global Mechanism. I will now like to open the floor for the representatives of parties and observers who wish to make a statement. So please press the microphone button in front of you if you wish to make a statement. I give the floor to the representative of China. Please, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chairperson. China thanks the UNCCD Secretariat for its efforts in organizing capacity building activities. we would like to suggest that one in the allocation of funds and project arrangements, greater attention should be given to data infrastructure, long term monitoring, digital tools and related technical training. Second, we strongly recommend a technology transfer model that integrates data products, online tools, technical training and localized application together. In this regard, regional centers and international cooperation platforms could be used to facilitate the sharing and the application of remote sensing data methodologies, governance cases, and practical experiences. Three, with regard to national reporting, we call for greater guidance and technical assistance in two aspects. One, aligning national monitoring systems with global core indicators and methodologies, and B, supporting indicator conversion. For we further suggest that the secretariat share with the state parties the capacity building outcomes in different regions so as to facilitate the active participation of different national institutions. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you very much, China. I will now give the floor to the representative of the Montenegro, please.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, Montenegro welcomes the report on capacity building and thanks the secretariat to the global mechanism and partners for extensive work undertaken in support of parties. Montenegro recognized the value of peer learning, e-learning platforms, the UNCCD communities of learning and practice, and regional exchanges as practical mechanism for building technical expertise and facilitating the exchange of experience among parties. In this regard, Montenegro as co-chair of the community of learning and practice on drought management for Central and Eastern Europe, attaches particular importance to further strengthening this platform and enhancing its role as a practical demand-driven space for knowledge sharing, peer-to-peer support and capacity development among countries. From our experience, we see particular value in strengthening the link between knowledge, policy and practice. Communities of learning and practice can play an important role, not only in facilitating the exchange of experiences, but also in helping translate shared knowledge and practical lessons into useful policy messages, recommendations and solutions that can support national implementation and, where relevant, contribute to regional and global UNCCD processes. We also encourage the Secretariat, Global Mechanism and relevant financial institutions and partners to explore and mobilize dedicated funding opportunities that can further support the work and sustainability of the CLPs, ensuring their long-term impact and scalability across regions. Montenegro would like to use this opportunity to express sincere gratitude to the Secretariat for all the efforts they are putting in support to CLPs. As a country that established national land degradation neutrality targets and finalized its land degradation neutrality target setting program report in 2018, Montenegro appreciates the importance of continued support for translating LDN targets into implementation, monitoring, integrated land use planning and investment planning. We therefore support further strengthening LDN related capacity building activities, including through geospatial tools, technical exchanges and support for resource mobilization, as well as through LDN TSP 2.0. Montenegro is interested in engaging in LDN TSP 2.0 and encourages the Secretariat and the Global Mechanism to explore sustainable financial options to support its further implementation and extensions. Montenegro also wishes to emphasize the importance of drought related capacity building as climate change increases pressures on land and water resources. Practical tools such as the drought toolbox and community silviculture can provide valuable support to national institutions and practitioners. We recognize the important contribution of land youth negotiator program to capacity building for young negotiators, as also highlighted in decision 5/2021. COP.16 and support the continuation of such efforts. Finally, we share the concern regarding the need for predictable, adequate and accessible financing for capacity building activities. Sustainable implementation requires long-term investments in institutions, technical expertise, knowledge management and innovation. Montenegro remains committed to working with all parties and partners to strengthen capacities at national, regional and global levels in support of effective implementation of the Convention. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Montenegro. I will now give the floor to the representative of the European Union. You have the floor.

Dear Madam Chair, distinguished delegates, The EU and its 27 member states underline the importance of capacity building for the effective implementation of the Convention. Given the limited resources available, cost efficiency is more important than ever. For this reason, we propose that the COP decision includes the following elements. First, the COP should reiterate the request to develop a capacity building strategy. Whilst this can be done in parallel with the development of the future strategic framework, we believe that a draft should already be prepared for consideration by the CRIC prior to COP18. Second, the COP should set out a clear process and timeline for potentially developing a network of hubs or regional centres for capacity building. This should include an assessment of lessons learned from the collaborations with regional support hubs in the preparation of the national reports, a consultation on options for modalities and institutional arrangements, a cost benefit analysis of the various options, and the preparation of a clear proposal for the further process to be decided at COP18. Furthermore, we wish to highlight the significant contribution to the implementation of the convention from the EU Copernicus program, as well as the important role of the group on Earth observations. Thank you, Madam Chair.

I thank the representative of the European Union. I will now give the floor to the representative of the United Arab Emirates, please.

Thank you, Chair. We are sorry we didn't request for the floor.

Okay, this is thus a mistake. Sorry about that. I will now give the floor thus to the representative of Nepal. Please you have the floor. Nepal, you have the floor.

Hello.

Yeah. Madam Chair, actually Nepal has not, so the land of Nepal not affected by desertification, but however, the land degradation and dry light has been become the major concern. Due to the climate exchange, variable rainfall pattern, the heavy monsoon is impacting on the land degradation by landslide hazards in the upper lands and flooding in the lower lands, impacting on the main food land of Nepal in lower land. Similarly, when we go in hilly area, due to the variability in precipitation pattern, the drying of land has impacting on the agriculture production. Two years ago, about eight districts were declared as dry land, where the production reduced and the farmers or the people compelled to transfer from that area. So in the country like Nepal, where the in hill area, landslide is major problem and drying of land has been mentioned. We have to implement our support in this program. Thanks.

Thank you very much, Nepal. I will now give the floor to the representative of the Philippines. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. The Philippines supports the development of a comprehensive country-driven and long-term capacity building strategy under the convention. We wish to offer one consideration for our national experience. We see merit in approaching capacity building as a continuum that begins at an early age and ultimately translate into action on the ground. In the Philippines, the Bureau of Soils and Water Management Youth Committee conducts on-campus activities, introducing soil health and responsible land stewardship to students from elementary through high school. We are also currently discussing opportunities to further strengthen the integration of soil and water resources and sustainable land management in earlier levels of education, while the agriculture curriculum is being reviewed and revised to strengthen these areas. While university and professional programs remain essential for developing technical expertise, we believe that awareness, appreciation, and stewardship of our soil, water, and land resources can be cultivated much earlier. At the same time, we see value in ensuring that capacity building extends beyond education and training by strengthening institutional and technical capacities that can be applied in communities and translated into practical and implementation.

On the ground.

The Philippines therefore invites consideration of this education to implementation continuum from cultivating awareness and stewardship at an early age to developing professional and institutional capacities and ultimately to concrete action for sustainable land management and land restoration. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you very much to the representative of the Philippines. And now I will give the floor to the representative of Guyana.

You have the floor.

Thank you, Chair. Guyana thanks the Secretariat and the Global Mechanism for the document ICCD-CRIC 24/3 and aligns itself with statements of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean Countries Annex III. For Guyana, capacity building determines whether commitments to the Convention can be implemented as CRIC-23 recognized enduring structural challenges remain, including fragmented delivery, limited coordination, inadequate staffing, and shortfall in predictable long term financing. Guyana welcomes the regional support hub for the 2026 reporting process, including the partnership initiative for sustainable land management serve in the Caribbean and the peer learning approach of the Annex three workshop in Panama City. However, these arrangements must not end with this reporting cycle. We support accessing lessons learned, and giving regional hubs a durable mandate and predictable resources that can offer helpdesk services, data validation, and technical support, extending throughout the reporting and implementation cycle, while avoiding duplicative structures. For Guyana, the capacity building strategy must reduce fragmentation, be aligned with the post-2030 strategic framework, embed a fit-for-purpose approach for small island developing states, sustain gender-responsive and youth-focused programs, and be matched with predictable financing rather than remaining subject to voluntary resources. Earth observation, geospatial tools, and artificial intelligence are promising. And Guyana welcomes work on high resolution data sets better suited to small territories. Digital innovation must however be accompanied by investment in connectivity, digital literacy, affordable and maintainable tools and accessible outputs. Guyana calls for capacity building that is sustained, regionally anchored and proportionate to the realities of small states. Thank you.

Thank you very much to the representative of Guyana. I will now give the floor to the representative of the Dominican Republic. You have the floor.

Thank you, Chair, and distinguished participants on the panel. I would also like to congratulate all the speakers for their very insightful and relevant contributions. The Dominican Republic would like to briefly emphasize that capacity building is fundamental to the effective implementation of the Convention. For countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, strengthening capacities means going beyond training activities. It requires building and sustaining institutional, technical, scientific and technological capacities that allow countries to translate commitments into concrete action, strengthen intersectoral coordination, access and use available technologies and make better informed decisions. The discussions today have highlighted several important areas in this regard. The need to improve coordination across sectors, including environment, water, agriculture and infrastructure, to facilitate access to finance, to strengthen technology transfer and knowledge exchange, and to make better use of innovation and digital tools, including artificial intelligence for land restoration, monitoring and decision making. Capacity building should there be demand driven and sustained responding to national and regional needs and supported through international cooperation, technology transfer and knowledge exchange as emphasized by the GRULAC during the first meeting of this work 24. Platform such as the CLP provide valuable opportunities to share experiences, good practices, tools and knowledge while strengthening practical capacities for drought preparedness and risk management. And initiatives as the Youth Negotiators Academy through the Land Youth Negotiator Program have provided important opportunity for young delegates to participate meaningfully in this COP17. Participation creates ownership. The more you engage young people, communities, institutions and stakeholders in these processes, the greater our ability to translate knowledge into action and ensure that the implementation of the Convention responds to the realities on the ground. Thank you.

I thank the representative of the Dominican Republic. I now give the floor to the representative of Brazil. Brazil, you have the floor.

Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Brazil welcomes the draft decisions on the promotion of capacity building to further implementation of the Convention. We consider capacity building to be a fundamental means of implementation and not merely a matter of training activities, workshops or knowledge sharing. Capacity building should strengthen national, subnational and local institutions. technical, scientific and technology capacities, particularly in developing countries, in a demand-driven, continuous and country-owned matter, taking into account national circumstances and priorities. We also attach importance to the technical cooperation, technology transfer and exchange of knowledge, including South-South, North-South and triangular cooperation. These efforts should be closely linked to access to finance, project preparation, monitoring and reporting, and implementation of national commitments under the Convention. In this regard, Article 19 provides an important basis for a comprehensive approach to capacity building, including through education, science, technology, knowledge networks, and regional and sub-regional cooperation. Brazil D4 supports strengthening capacities for monitoring and reporting, integrated land use planning, land degradation neutrality, drought resilience, data generation and use, earth observation technologies, project preparation and resource mobilization. Capacity building requires adequate, predictable and sustainable financial and technical resources. as well as mechanisms to access not only activities delivered, but also their effective contribution to strengthen national capacities and advancing implementation of the Convention. Finally, Brazil would also like to encourage the importance of addressing the current freezing of secretary positions. Ensuring that the Secretariat has the necessary human and institutional capacity to effectively support Parties and advance implementation of the Convention should be an integral part of our discussions on means of implementation, particularly in the capacity-building discussions. In this regard, we consider that the issue of unfrozen positions should be duly addressed in the budget discussion with a view to ensuring that the Secretariat is adequately resourced discharge its mandate functions and provide necessary support to developing countries parties, especially in the capacity building discussions. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much to the representative of Brazil. And I will now give the floor to the Republic of Moldova. You have the floor.

Thank you. Madam Chair, honorable delegates, on behalf of the government of the Republic of Moldova, I would like to thank and congratulate the government of Mongolia and the UNCCD Secretariat for the excellent organization of CRIC 24. We would like to express our gratitude to the UNCCD Secretariat, the Global Environment Facility, The United Nation Environment Program and all partners for their valuable technical guidance and continuous support through capacity building sessions throughout the PRIS 2026 reporting process. The Republic of Moldova also highly appreciates the UNCCD continued investment in youth engagement and capacity development through initiatives such as the Land Hero Campaign and the Land Youth Negotiator Program. Following the successful first fundamental course held in 2024, we are glad that this valuable initiative continues with an advanced course, providing young professionals with opportunities to strengthen their negotiation skills, and actively contribute to the implementation of the Convention. Moldova is honored to be part of this program and firmly believes that empowering young negotiators is essential for ensuring the long-term success of the Convention. Madam Chair, the Republic of Moldova highly values the capacity building support in the UNCCD processes. We remain committed to working closely with the secretariat parties and partner organizations to accelerate progress towards land degradation neutrality, strengthen drought resilience and contribute to the achievement of the sustainable development goals. Thank you for your attention.

I thank you, distinguished representative of the Republic of Moldova. I will now give the floor to the representative of Sudan. Sudan, you have the floor.

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, the Sudanese delegation would like to emphasize that capacity building is a fundamental requirement for the effective implementation of the United Nations confection to combat the situation in Sudan. Sudan is facing much double interconnected challenges, including droughts, land degradation, desertification, climate change, and water insecurity. This change have been further aggravated by the ongoing conflict, which has severely affected institutional capacity, technical expertise, livelihoods, and the ability of resources needed to implement sustainable land management programs. In this context, Sudan believes that capacity building should go beyond professional training. It should be considered as a long-term and comprehensive process aimed at strengthening national institutions, the following technical and human capacities. improving data and information system and enhancing the capacity to plan, implement, monitor and evaluate programs for combating desertification. Sudan particularly requires support in the following areas, strengthening institutions and technical capacities of national institutes responsible for combating desertification and sustainable land management, and strengthening monitoring and information system for land degradations, droughts and desertification, including the use of remote sensing, GIS and other modern technologies, building capacity of local communities, farms, farmers and pastoralists to adopt sustainable lands and range land management practice and strengthen their resilience and their resilience to droughts and climate change, enhancing national capacities for project developments, implementation and reporting under the UNCCD, including the monitoring of land degradation and drought related indicators. Thanks.

Are you finished, Sudan, or do you wish to go on? Okay, perfect. Thank you very much, distinguished representative of Sudan. I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Turkey. Turkey, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Following Turkey's hosting of COP12, we have actively contributed through the Ankara Initiative to supporting countries in setting their national targets. We have also built on this experience in developing our own national targets under the LDN TSP2 process, thereby advancing our national capacity and target setting process. The lessons learned from these processes have also provided a valuable basis for enhancing synergies among the Rio Conventions and for developing new project proposals. In this regard, we would like to express our appreciation to the UNCCD Secretariat for the technical support and guidance it has provided to countries throughout the target update process. Furthermore, through the UNCCD CLP platform, as a co-chair, we continue to contribute to enhance the capacities of Annex 4 countries in the areas of land degradation, drought, and sustainable land management. In addition, through international training programs and capacity building activities organized by Turkey, We support countries in developing their technical expertise in combating land degradation and drought, promoting sustainable land management. We would like to thank the UNCCD Secretariat and all participating countries for their continued cooperation and valuable contributions to this process. I thank you.

I thank you, distinguished representative of Turkey. I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Argentina. Argentina, you have the floor.

Thank you, Mrs. Chair.

Argentina welcomes this report and its implications because we're of the view that capacity building is vital for the successful implementation of the convention. We also recall that any policy or recommendation relating to information systems and follow-up systems.

That needs to be based on geospatial.

Information and any data procedure systems as well as systems for the application of digital technology and satellite monitoring.

That are geospatial based must first and foremost avoid providing additional and necessitating additional burdens when it comes to reporting.

We also need to factor in that the use of digital tools cannot be an obligation for parties. And we should not fall into the trap of thinking that greater access to digital tools means that an observer or party is in a position to report on another party or observer. In other words, we should all be submitting national reports and not reporting on each other. Finally, with regard to the suggested regional support hubs, I think it's important to bear in mind that excessive bureaucracy or red tape and the creation of additional extensive and weighty structures could lead to cost implications, which you'll be careful about given the current financial situation of the Convention and its instruments. Thank you very much.

I thank you, distinguished representative of Argentina. I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Suriname. Suriname, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Suriname welcomes the continued attention given to the targeted capacity building as a fundamental component of effective implementation of the convention. For developing countries and small island developing states, capacity building should go beyond short-term training activities. It should contribute to sustained national institutional and technical capacity, enabling countries to independently apply the tools, methodologies and data needed for implementation. We particularly support continued capacity building in national reporting, geospatial information, earth observation, land degradation monitoring, integrated land use planning, drought resilience, and early warning systems. At the same time, capacity building should be country driven and tailored to national and regional circumstances. Different countries have different institutional, technical, and data capacities, and support should respond to the needs identified by Parties themselves. We therefore call for greater attention to the specific capacity needs of SIDS regions and for stronger use of existing regional mechanisms. In the Caribbean, Suriname recognizes the important role of the Partnership Initiative for Sustainable Land Management in supporting regional cooperation, technical assistance, capacity building, and knowledge exchange. Strengthening such regional mechanism can help ensure that support is continuous, practical, and responsive to the realities of Caribbean states. We also encourage greater attention to technology transfer and hands-on technical assistance. Providing access to new technologies and data is important, but countries must also have the knowledge and institutional capacity to effectively use and maintain them. Finally, we emphasize the importance of continuity. Capacity developed through individual projects or reporting cycles should be retained and strengthened so that it contributes to long-term national planning, monitoring and implementation of the Convention. Thank you, Madam Chair.

I thank you, distinguished representative of Suriname. I will now invite and give the floor to the distinguished representative of the Cook Islands. You have the floor.

Madam Chair, thank you for the opportunity to take the floor and we thank the Secretariat for the report and for the work being undertaken on capacity building. For small island developing states such as ours, effective capacity building requires both access to the right tools and technologies and investment in people who will use them. With small administrations and limited human resources, building technical knowledge is important, but equally important is retaining that knowledge, strengthening institutional memory, and preparing the next generation to participate effectively in these processes. We have seen the value of regional and sub-regional training for the effective implementation of the convention, including in strengthening national reporting capacities, Such training provides technical and practical support while also creating opportunities for peer learning and exchange. We have also heard from parties today about the importance of going beyond traditional training, including by strengthening capacities in areas such as geospatial tools, artificial intelligence, and the use of high quality data sets. We welcome this broader approach. We therefore welcome the emphasis on country-driven and needs-based capacity building. We also see particular value in investing in the next generation of negotiators. Initiatives such as the Land Youth Negotiators Program through the Youth Negotiators Academy, which has trained 80 young negotiators to participate effectively at COP17, show how mentoring, practical experience, and exposure to multilateral negotiations can help build a pipeline of young professionals who can carry this work forward. We also recognize the value of the Women Delegates Fund in supporting women's participation in convention processes and strengthening more inclusive engagement. For small countries, these investments are not simply about enabling participation at meetings. They help us build lasting national capacity and institutional knowledge and ultimately strengthening our ability to translate international commitments into implementation at home. We therefore encourage capacity building under the Convention to continue investing in tools, technologies and data, alongside the people and institutions that will use them and carry this Convention forward. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you very much, distinguished representative of the Cook Islands. I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of South Africa. South Africa, you have the floor.

Thank you, Chair, and good morning. South Africa welcomes with appreciation the comprehensive report of the UNCCD Secretariat, the global mechanism and the convention hosted initiatives such as the Global Land Initiative on reducing land degradation. South Africa also recognized capacity building as an essential enabler for transformative change and a prerequisite for achieving land degradation neutrality, drought resilience, sustainable land management and effective national reporting. Considering the lack of predictable, adequate, and accessible financing, which remains the greatest barrier for scaling up capacity building. South Africa calls for enhanced partnerships with multilateral development banks, the global environmental facility, donors, private sector, as well as the creation of dedicated financing windows for regional hubs, national fellowship, data systems, and community-led capacity programs. There is also a need for enhanced support for institutional strengthening at all levels. This includes technical training, improved data collection and reporting capabilities, particularly in relation to place and the promotion of integrated sustainable land use planning and the conservation practices. Whilst we have noted that the development of the capacity building strategy has been put on hold to take into consideration the elements of the post 2030 strategic framework, the capacity building strategy should serve as a mechanism to strengthen coordination, reduce fragmented delivery and silos, and enhance impact driven capacity building across the convention. It is should it should further provide clear guidance on institutional arrangements, identification of regional hubs where they don't exist and their roles, partnership and coordination, capacity building to drought resilience to support parties in strengthening drought monitoring, early warning system preparedness, proactive risk management and the development and implementation of national route should remain central. While it's exploring and appreciating what has been presented in terms of formal capacity building mechanism through the graduate program, we should also not lose sight of the opportunities that lies in the informal stream as well in terms of capacity building through initiatives such as a citizen science approach. because it gives us an opportunity not to only see communities as, um, who owns the land and work the land as only subjects for awareness and advocacy, um, and, and, and education, but also as partners that can play a significant role for sustained land management program at local level. Thank you, Chair.

I thank you, distinguished representative of South Africa. I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Haiti. Haiti, you have the floor.

Madam Chair, on behalf of the Haitian delegation, I'd like to thank the government of Mongolia for their wonderful hospitality. Ladies and gentlemen, dear delegates, Capacity building is vital for Haiti and a priority for us in the field. Technical skills locally is an absolute priority for us through different projects. Haiti has already identified needs for capacity building. to combat desertification and to better coordinate the work of ministries and to mobilize national and multilateral financing. For progress we made, we need to bolster institutional capacities to strengthen cooperation between the different ministries to make sure that we can design and pilot and implement projects for capacity building. The middle term priorities are to build capacity of our national and local teams for degraded land, civil protection and other teams who are working to develop new and implement new technology. In the short term, we want to structure projects to mobilize funds, including multilateral funds with flexible financing. To conclude, capacity building in Haiti must aim to consolidate our activities to bolster local capacity to support local projects so that we can efficiently have access to financing as well. Thank you.

I thank you, distinguished representative of Haiti. And I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe, you have the floor.

Thank you very much. Zimbabwe welcomes the report of the Secretariat on capacity building and various initiatives being taken to implement this important agenda item to strengthen land management. Zimbabwe remains recently committed to advancing sustainable land management, enhancing drought resilience and achieving land degradation neutrality as foundational drivers of our national development and economic transformation. By fully aligning our domestic frameworks with the objectives of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, we are actively strengthening institutional capacities, expanding technical cooperation, and leveraging innovative geospatial tools and earth observation data, such as national land cover mapping and targeted drought monitoring systems deployed across vulnerable agroecological zones like Matireland and Masvingo to safeguard our vital ecosystems. Further, as we look forward to post-2030 strategic horizon, Zimbabwe champions a country-driven, inclusive capacity building approach that empowers local communities, youth and women, exemplified by grassroots ward level restoration initiatives and community-led gully reclamation project while bridging the gap between rigorous scientific research and practical policy execution. Through enhanced regional partnerships, South-South cooperation and strategic resource mobilization, we will continue to translate global environmental commitments into tangible, scalable land restoration actions on the ground. The task ahead is complex, and huge and therefore needs capacity building in artificial intelligence to mention but just one area of need. I thank you Chairman.

I thank you distinguished representative of Zimbabwe. I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Kiribati. Kiribati you have the floor.

Thank you Chair. Kiribati welcomes the report on capacity building and strongly emphasizes that effective implementation of the convention requires capacity building that is sustained, practical, inclusive and responsive to national circumstances. As a small island developing state, least developed country and low-lying atoll country, Kiribati faces particular challenges arising from the limited financial, human and technical resources, geographic dispersion, limited land and freshwater resources, drought vulnerability and gaps in data monitoring and institutional systems. Kiribati believes that Capacity building is fundamental to supporting implementation of the Convention and should govern both formal and informal learning approaches while promoting the meaningful engagement of diverse stakeholders. Capacity building should also be country specific and tailored to identified capacity gaps, enabling countries with limited capacity to translate global LDN indicators and methodologies into their national context and effectively report progress. During the UNCCD regional capacity building activities for the 2026 reporting process, Kiribati has experienced challenges in applying the technical knowledge and skills gained from the training, specifically the application of Trend Thought Earth. because of our very small and geographically dispersed land area and unique atoll environment, which are not always adequately reflected in standard approaches and global datasets. Kiribati therefore requests that future capacity building programs be designed and delivered in a more country specific and context responsive manner with practical follow up technical support after training. Kiribati further calls on the Secretariat and the global mechanism to ensure timely resource mobilization and sustained technical and financial support for capacity building that responds directly to the identified needs and circumstances of small island developing states, least developed countries and low-lying atoll countries such as Kiribati, to translate capacity into effective implementation, monitoring and reporting under the convention. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, distinguished delegate from Kiribati, and please accept my apologies for not pronouncing your country's name right earlier on. Now, I would like to give the floor to the representative of the intergovernmental organization, and it is the International Union for Conservation of Nature that will take the floor from the microphone 242. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chair, distinguished delegates. IUCN welcomes the report on capacity building and thanks the secretariat and the global mechanism on this work. We welcome the report's plain statement that capacity building under the Convention continues to face fragmented institutional arrangements, inadequate staffing, and persistent shortfalls in predictable long-term financing. We urge all Parties to provide adequate resourcing for this important effort. We also welcome the development of a comprehensive capacity building strategy alongside the future strategic framework. On the regional support hubs established for this reporting cycle, IUCN strongly encourages parties to decide their future at this session. Parties themselves warned at the last session against creating a two-tier knowledge landscape and capacity building that reaches only those already equipped to receive it widens the gap it was meant to close. IUCN brings seven expert commissions and regional offices in every UNCCD annex to this work. At our World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi last October, 1600 members adopted resolution 008 on the conservation and sustainable management of rangelands and pastoralism which mandates our director general to advance this agenda during the international year of rangelands and pastoralists and beyond we offer IUCN's full support and look forward to the continued collaboration with parties the secretariat and partners on effective capacity building thank you madam chair.

Thank you very much to the IUCN. And I would like now to give the floor to UNEP, which is speaking from the microphone 267.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Distinguished delegates, UNEP welcomes the draft recommendation on strengthening capacity building as a cornerstone for accelerating implementation of the UNCCD. We wish to highlight four priorities. First, capacity building must harness digital innovation while closing the digital divide. Earth observation, geospatial technologies, artificial intelligence, and accessible data platforms can significantly strengthen evidence-based decision-making. UNEP remains committed to supporting user-friendly digital tools and data systems that respond to country needs. Second, we recognize the value of regional support hubs established for the 2026 reporting cycle, as well as the community of learning and practice, CLPs, by leveraging AI and machine learning for predictive land restoration modeling, real-time degradation tracking, and targeted capacity building. UNEP and its partners can deliver decentralized support that seamlessly integrates into existing governance structures, while avoiding duplication. Third, capacity building must be translated into practical support on the ground. As a JEF implementing agency, UNEP is supporting 113 countries through the 2026 UNCCD National Reporting Umbrella Projects and Global Support Program, strengthening national capacities for land degradation neutrality monitoring, integrated land use planning, and drought resilience. Fourth, capacity building efforts should be predictable, sustainably financed, and aligned with the development of the post-2030 strategic framework. Greater coherence among the Rio Conventions and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework will enhance efficiency, reduce fragmentation, and help scale up land restoration action. UNEP stands ready to continue working with the secretariat, the global mechanism, country parties and partners including the indigenous people and local communities, women and youth to advance the implementation of the UNCCD including support to development of a capacity building strategy. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, UNEP. I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Uganda. Uganda, you have the floor, please.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Uganda takes the floor in its own national capacity. We thank you, Madam Chair, and the Bureau for your leadership in guiding the work. Uganda would like to place particular emphasis on capacity building as a fundamental means of implementation of the Convention. For Uganda and many developing countries, the challenge is not lack of commitment or ambition. the challenge is the capacity to translate commitment into programs and projects that can be implemented, monitored, reported, and scaled up. Land degradation, desertification, and drought are increasingly complex and interconnected challenges. Addressing them requires strong institutions, qualified technical personnel, reliable data, appropriate technologies, effective coordination, and adequate capacity at both national and subnational levels. Uganda therefore calls for long-term, predictable, and country-driven capacity building rather than short-term and fragmented intervention. We also call for institutional and capacity building strengthening institutional capacity within the national ministries and departments responsible for implementing the convention, capacity building for monitoring and data reporting, with particular attention should be given to capacity in geospatial analysis, soil monitoring productivity assessment, and drought monitoring. We also welcome continued support to parties in using Paris and other UNCCD reporting tools. Project development and access to finance is also emphasized to enable us to translate national priorities into bankable projects. We urge the convention and its partners to provide practical assistance that will enable countries to move from national commitments to a pipeline of investment programs. Uganda further calls for strengthened access to affordable and accessible technologies for drought early warning, climate information, digital land monitoring, sustainable agriculture, water management and ecosystem restoration and land use planning by training, maintenance, capacity and institutional support. We also encourage greater south to south and triangular cooperation among countries to share practical solutions and lessons learned. We call for capacity building for communities, women and youth since they are the primary actors managing many of the landscapes affected by degradation. Farmers, pastoralists, women and youth require access to knowledge, skills, technologies, and financial opportunities to adapt to sustainable land management practices. Uganda therefore encourages capacity building projects, programs that are locally owned, inclusive, gender responsive, and designed around practical needs on the ground. Uganda emphasizes that capacity building should be country driven, long term, demand driven, institutional, inclusive, and measurable. We believe that capacity building should be treated as an investment. I thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you very much, distinguished representative of Uganda. I would now like to give the floor to the distinguished representative of Djibouti. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Good morning to all. First, I wish to congratulate the Secretariat for the documents presented here, which will be highly useful to us. I'd also like to commend progress made, the support in establishing national reports through regional hubs and defining potential programs for land degradation and the drought toolbox. Chair, I would like to stress four recommendations. Firstly, financing. My delegation fully shares the concerns expressed in the document. There is a lack of resources, which are predictable ones, that is really jeopardising capacity building, particularly for least developed countries. For a country like mine, it's vital for the effective implementation to have simplified support mechanisms. Secondly, regional support for operationalization to have decentralized centers of excellences which must meet the genuine needs of countries, avoid duplication, and mean that we can take regional ownership, particularly in Africa. Thirdly, on drought and rangelands. In this year, we're celebrating rangelands in particular. We need to make sure that we have national action plans to combat drought. This is absolutely vital for Africa in particular. For young people and digital transformation, we need to train young people to harness AI and digital tools in capacity building. We have a young population. They need to be the heart of restoring land projects for their use tomorrow, and they need to harness AI to make sure that tools available to our administration to make sure as well that we have no digital divide between countries. We support the global strategy for capacity building and we're delighted that it really focuses on national ownership. Thank you.

Thank you very much, distinguished representative of Djibouti. I will now give the floor to the representative of Somalia. Please, distinguished delegates of Somalia, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair. As this is the first time Somalia is taking the floor at this session, allow us to begin by expressing our sincere appreciation to the Government and people of Mongolia for their warm hospitality and for hosting COP17 here in Ulaanbaatar. Somalia would also like to thank the UN-DCC Secretariat and the Executive Secretary for their leadership and continued efforts in advancing the implementation of the conventions. Somalia allies its inventions with the views expressed by African countries that have taken the floor before us, particularly on the importance of transiting capacity building for affected developing countries. Somalia welcomes the progress made by the UNCCD Secretariat in its transiting capacity building for the effective implementation of the conventions. We particularly welcome the development of comprehensive capacity building strategy and the increased intentions to country driving approach, innovations, digital technologies, gender responsiveness, and meaningful youth participation. Somalia continues to face severe drought, land degradation, and significant institutional and technical capacity gaps. We therefore emphasize that capacity building must be country driven, need is based and responsive to the national circumstances. We particularly highlight the need to strengthen national and local expertise in drought monitoring and early warning, land restoration and drought management and monitoring tools. Somalia stresses the importance of predictable, adequate and accessible financing for capacity building, particularly for least developed countries and other vulnerable countries. Without sustained financial and technical resources, capacity building cannot effectively translate into the implementation on the ground. Finally, Somalia calls for a shift from one-off training activities to sustain institutional and national expertise, capacity building, long-term technical assistance and practical implementation that respond directly to the national and local priorities. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, distinguished representative of Somalia. I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Panama. Panama, you have the floor.

Thank you. Panama would like to emphasize the critical importance of capacity buildings in developing countries to produce stronger, more accurate and nationally based reports under the convention. Our experience throughout the reporting process has demonstrated that capacity building is not simply a matter of learning how to use the report platform. It's about training national technical capacities, improving institutional coordination, and enabling countries to generate, understand, and validate their own data. In Panama, sustained technical support and capacity building allowed us to move beyond the use of default data and data sets and progressively incorporate national data-based information, expert knowledge, and nationally appropriate methodologies into our assessment of land degradation. This process has significantly improved the level of detail, consistency and national ownership of our reporting and facilitating the understanding of other stakeholders like indigenous communities, local communities, women and youth. Our concrete example is our work on land productivity dynamics, where Panama has been able to develop analysis using a 10 meter resolution data. This represents an important improvement in our ability to understand land dynamics at the national level and to produce information that is more representative of our territorial realities. For Panama, the lesson is clear. When countries receive meaningful and sustained capacity building, reporting becomes more than an international obligation. It becomes an opportunity to strengthen the national knowledge and its institutional capacity. We therefore encourage the convention and its partners to continue investing in substantial practical and country-driven capacity building, particularly to enable developing countries to make greater use of their own national data and technical expertise. Looking ahead, Panama is seeking to take the next step to transform the knowledge and data sets generated through the reporting process into practical decision support tools for land management, restoring and sustainable territorial planning. Our experience shows that better reporting can be the foundation for better decisions. Capacity building is what allows countries to make that transition. Thank you.

Thank you very much, distinguished representative of Panama. I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Burundi. Burundi, you have the floor. Burundi, do you want to take the floor or was it a mistake? Yeah, go ahead. Well, can you please press the microphone button? No? Okay, it was a mistake then. Thank you very much. I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of Indonesia. Indonesia, you have the floor.

Thank you, Chair. I would like to thank today's presenter, who provided comprehensive information on the development and promotion of active for targeted capacity building for further implementation of the convention. Indonesia would like to share Indonesia's views that capacity building efforts for the UNCCD might be focused on the integrated government framework, sustainable watershed management, and community level training into land degradation neutrality. Therefore, Indonesia would like to share the following areas should be addressed. System and institutional capacity is important in integrating UNCC targets into national environmental policies. Watershed management training to support adequate UNCCD report. and enhancing national capacity to measure, report and verify for forest changes, ensuring safeguard and for ecosystem health. Individual and community level training, which also includes knowledge transfer and inclusion of women and local communities. And Indonesia see that multilateral stakeholder engagement by aligning UN SDGs with expanding stakeholder involvement to translate policy into bankable environmental projects are important. Thank you.

Thank you very much, distinguished representative of Indonesia. And I will now give the floor to the distinguished representative of the Solomon Islands. Solomon Islands, you have the floor.

Thank you, Chair. The Solomon Islands delegation extends its appreciation to the Chair and the UNCCD Secretariat for the comprehensive report on capacity building and for their continued efforts in supporting parties in implementing the convention. The Solomon Islands aligns itself with the statements delivered on behalf of the Pacific Small Island Development States and wishes to express its support for the report on capacity building. We recognize that effective capacity building remains fundamental to achieving the objectives of the convention and translating commitments into tangible actions on the ground. For countries such as Solomon Islands, strengthening institutional, technical and human capacities is essential to address land degradation, enhance ecosystem resilience and promote sustainable land management practices. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much, distinguished representative of the Solomon Island. And I will now give the floor to the NGOs and its representative who will be speaking from the microphone 276. Please, you have the floor. And please state the name of your organization. Thank you.

Thank you, Chair. Distinguished delegates, on behalf of civil society and indigenous people, we welcome the convention effort to strengthen capacity building as a key pillar of effective UNCCD implementation. However, we emphasize one fundamental message, our responsibility is not only to build capacity, but to recognize, support, and connect the knowledge, innovation, and leadership that already exist locally. We therefore call on parties for three priorities. First, develop a people-centered and inclusive capacity building strategy. Capacity building must go beyond institutional training and technical workshop to give the space to communities to design, implement and mentor solutions. It should prioritize community innovation, including those led by women and youth. Second, Recognise Indigenous and community knowledge and practices as scientific asset. Scientific and traditional knowledge should strengthen each other and communities recognised as key actors, partners and knowledge producers. Third, invest in youth as long-term land restoration leaders. This requires mentorship, leadership, and technical training, access to direct innovation funds, and meaningful participation in policy and decision making. Fourth, ensure access to learning opportunity for grassroots organization. leading on restoration, agroecology, droughts, adaptation, and sustainable livelihoods. Fifth, strengthening regional and South-South cooperation through regional knowledge network, peer-to-peer learning and exchange connection, communities facing similar challenges. Sixth, mutual capacity building through real impact, Success cannot be measured only by training or participants. It must be reflected in increased community resilience, restored landscapes, improved livelihoods, stronger local institutions, and greater participation. Capacity building is about creating conditions for people to lead their own transformation. At COP17, let it become a pathway for empowerment, equality and justice. Finally, civil society expressed deep concern over the exclusion of gender, civil society participation and synergy from COP agenda. We urge parties to reinstate the items and ensure meaningful deliberations in line with tests of convention and previously adopted decision recognizing and inclusive participation in essential for effective and transformative implementation of the convention. Thank you, Chair. I'm Innocent Antoine Houedje from Youth Initiative for Land in Africa, Benin. Thank you.

Thank you very much, distinguished representative of the civil society. I think we have exhausted the list of speakers for this segment, so I will now invite our panelists to respond. I will first give the floor to Ms. Catherine Mutembarwa of the Global Mechanism.

Thank you, Che.

Distinguished delegates, I think we acknowledge the wealth of recommendations that have been provided by the various parties and institutions. I would like to highlight that the global mechanism is developing a resource mobilization toolkit and we will take into consideration all the recommendations that have been provided. Further information on the toolkit is provided in the quick document on progress made in the mobilization of resources and financial flows for the implementation of the convention, which will be discussed this afternoon. So we take in summary, take seriously the recommendations that we need to ensure that capacity building efforts are country driven, long term, inclusive, aligned with technological advancements, um, and artificial intelligence among others. We will also continue to coordinate, um, in all these efforts with the secretariats, the G20, um, Global Land Initiative, as well as our Business for Land Initiative. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Ms. Mutambirwa. I would like to give the floor to the representative of UNDP speaking from microphone 266, please.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

We wish to start by thanking the government of Mongolia and the people of Mongolia for the hospitality in this beautiful city of Ulaanbaatar. In response to the discussion today, UNDP would like to highlight that together with the University of Bonn and WOCAT, we're starting the implementation of the GEF medium-sized project called Scaling the Capacity of UNCCD Parties for Inclusive Decision Support in Land Degradation Neutrality. The project responds directly to some of the capacity needs identified by countries to better monitor land degradation and translate monitoring into informed decisions and action towards achieving LDN. A strong focus will be placed on the co-production of practical knowledge and decision support tools with countries, capacity development and South-South knowledge exchange and learning, so that experiences and solutions developed in one country can benefit others. We look forward to working closely with parties and partners through this initiative over the coming two years. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you very much, UNDP. I will now give the floor to Mr. Daniel Tegai of the UNCCD Secretariat to answer.

Thank you, Madam Chair, distinguished delegates. Your points on making the communities of learning and practice practical mechanism to connect science knowledge and experience with policy and implementation are very well received. We particularly welcome the emphasis on making CLPs coordinated, inclusive, scalable and also impact driven while connecting existing knowledge hubs and networks rather than creating parallel structures. So these elements can help strengthen the community of learning and practice, so scaling up, foster intersectoral collaboration, and importantly translate knowledge into action while reducing fragmentation and ensuring continuity the long term that you have been focusing on. So we look forward to seeing these points taken up at the contact group. Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you very much Mr. Tsige and I will now give the floor to Ms. Wagaki Vishnevsky of the G20 Global Land Initiative.

Thank you Madam Chair and thank you delegates for the rich contribution and discussion that we have had this morning. I just wanted to highlight some of the things that came across I think from the floor but also from the Secretariat. I think there's a lot of alignment and one of the top things that I think kept coming across is the need for capacity that capacity building is Central to implementation that without it we will not be able to move forward um in this regard I think we had several um interventions about the different impacts that countries have or challenges that they are facing and how capacity building would be useful The second thing that I think we had is that capacity building needs to be country driven and specifically some delegations pointed to the differences in the technologies and the capacities that are provided at regional level and how they need to be relevant at the local level. In this regard, there was also emphasis to have not just formal capacity building, but informal capacity building that also supports citizen science. The other aspect that came across strongly was the need to have a capacity building strategy by COP18 and I think some processes were elaborated on how to get there, including a document to be discussed at CRIC, the next CRIC. The next issue I think that was highlighted was a need for financial resources and technical investments to be predictable, accessible and to parties otherwise implementation of the desired outcomes will not be realized. Regional hubs and they were given different terminologies, regional hubs, technical cooperation for South South were emphasized. And in this regard, importance is given to lessons learned and also the outcomes of capacity building in different regions. Some reporting is needed in that area. There was emphasis that training should go beyond individuals to ensure that there's institutional capacities, but also in the use of the technologies that are proposed or provided. In addition to the technology issue, there was reference to building capacity in AI and also the geospatial tools so that to ensure that there's also sustainability at the national level. There was emphasis that these tools are useful for reporting, however, that they should not be made mandatory or place an excessive burden on countries for reporting. There was also emphasis for youth support. I think there was a lot of support in terms of providing capacity for youth, women, and local communities. For youth specifically, the youth negotiator program was highlighted, but I think at the community level, there was also emphasis to ensure that the people on the ground receive information or skills that are practical. and also that the information and skills that come from the local level and knowledge translate upwards to the national and global level, including, including through policy formulation. Madam Chair, I want to, um, leave it at that, but I think there was very rich dialogue and we've taken a lot of your points into consider in, in, in, in our notes and we'll definitely reflect them in the report. Thank you.

I agree. Thank you very much. Mrs. Vishnevsky. We have thus concluded this stage of our consideration of sub-item D of agenda item 2. And before adjourning this meeting, I wanted to remind the participants that the third meeting of the committee will take place on Tuesday, 18th of August, so today, at 3:00 PM in this very hall. The meeting is adjourned.