Every year, land degradation claims an area equivalent to two countries the size of Spain, with losses accumulating at a rate of four football fields per second. This widespread deterioration threatens billions of people and reduces the global economy by nearly $1 trillion annually. If left unaddressed, experts warn that by 2050, up to 95 percent of the world’s land could suffer degradation—defined as a loss in the land’s ability to provide economic, environmental, and social benefits—while drought conditions may affect over three-quarters of the global population.
Amid these alarming trends, delegates are currently convening in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, for the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The summit, under the theme "Restoring Land, Restoring Hope," highlights a growing awareness that land restoration is critical not only for environmental sustainability but also as a driver of economic development and social well-being.
Recent developments suggest the global community may be positioned to make a significant shift from ambition to tangible action. One key development is the increasing engagement within the UNCCD process. The previous COP in Riyadh in 2024 marked the most inclusive meeting to date, elevating land use and drought issues alongside other global challenges such as food and water security, gender equality, and secure land tenure. The Riyadh Action Agenda, a landmark global framework dedicated to land restoration, emerged from this summit and has since united over 100 public and private partners in collaborative efforts.
Another notable trend is the enhanced integration of the so-called Rio Conventions—on climate change, biodiversity, and land—previously treated as separate agendas since their inception at the 1992 Earth Summit. The growing recognition of their interconnectedness is driving calls for more coordinated policymaking, financing, and implementation strategies to address these overlapping planetary crises.
Developing and emerging economies have also taken on a more prominent leadership role in driving the agenda forward. Since 2013, biennial summits have been hosted primarily by countries in these categories, including Namibia, China, India, Ivory Coast, with Egypt set to host the upcoming COP18. This shift is reflected in various national and regional restoration programs initiated across the developing world.
Large-scale restoration efforts continue to expand beyond national borders, building on initiatives such as the 2011 Bonn Challenge, which aims to restore 350 million hectares of degraded land by 2030. The Middle East Green Initiative, endorsed by nearly 30 countries, exemplifies this momentum with its goal to plant 50 billion trees and rehabilitate 200 million hectares of land across the region.
Finally, financing for land restoration and drought resilience is increasing after years of underinvestment. Multilateral development banks reported record climate financing of $163 billion in 2025, with a portion allocated to land and drought-related projects. New financing frameworks are emerging that leverage public funds to attract private and concessional capital. Programs such as the Middle East Green Initiative and the Riyadh Global Drought Resilience Partnership are pioneering this approach. Additionally, innovative mechanisms like Luxembourg’s Drought Resilience Investment Facility seek to establish a sustainable market for drought resilience. Private sector groups such as Business4Land, along with new financial instruments including thematic bonds and resilience credits, aim to recast healthy land as an asset capable of generating multifaceted returns.
While considerable challenges remain, these developments suggest the global land agenda is at a critical inflection point. The imperative now is for governments, international organizations, and investors to accelerate efforts to translate momentum into meaningful results before the social and economic costs of environmental degradation become insurmountable.