Benin hosted the Fourth Africa/Asia Forum to Combat Desertification in June 2003. This Forum focused particularly on agroforestry and soil conservation. It allowed the various participants of the two continents to exchange agro-forestry techniques with the aim of combating desertification. It drew participants from around Africa and Asia. The exchange of experiences at the Forum also allowed the States in the two regions to identify points of agreement. As articulated in the resolution at the end of the Forum, these points of agreement include:
- Agro-forestry will not resolve all the problems arising from desertification, but its integration into soil management can contribute to improving the environmental situation;
- The importance of implementing a legal framework which includes incentives, participatory decision-taking, and improved competitiveness of the private sector;
- Within the context of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), measures for supporting synergistic programming between UNCCD, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) must be taken into account; and
- Priority should be placed on biodiversity and on the use of healing and aromatic plants in agro-forestry systems to fight soil degradation, promote sustainable development, and combat desertification.
Immediately following the Forum, African Ministers convened a preparatory meeting in anticipation of the Sixth Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UNCCD, which would be held about two months later. This meeting included the Ministers and Heads of Delegation from the African States who were party to the UNCCD. It enabled the African States to exchange ideas and develop a common negotiating position and identified priorities for the forthcoming COP and its associated negotiations. They adopted the Cotonou Statement that highlighted the following points:
- Their commitment to integrate the national action plans to combat desertification into policies and strategies for sustainable development in Africa;
- Their commitment to finalise the national action plans so that they could complete the regional action plan to combat desertification before the end of 2005;
- Their will to commit to developing and implementing agreements with partners to combat desertification, particularly through consultative processes that lead to implementation;
- Their commitment to combating desertification by incorporating the issue into major African initiatives, following the example of targeted actions in the framework of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD).
For more information, see
http://www.mehubenin.net
and
http://www.unccd.int
or contact
mehu@mehubenin.net
or
secretariat@unccd.int
. For more information on NEPAD, see the case study on “Action Plan of the Environment Initiative of NEPAD,” following Guideline 34(f)
.