FAO at the UN Convention to Combat Desertification Conference (UNCCD COP17)
Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia), 17/08/2026 - 28/08/2026
The seventeenth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) will take place in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from 17 to 28 August 2026 under the theme “Restoring Land. Restoring Hope.” This focus highlights the interconnected challenges of desertification, land degradation and drought, recognizing that restoring land and soil is essential not only for environmental sustainability, but also for food security, livelihoods, resilience and stability
The aim of this year’s global conference is to review the progress made since UNCCD COP16 in addressing desertification, land degradation and drought, while exploring emerging priorities such as agrifood system solutions and the sustainable management of grasslands and rangelands. These discussions are increasingly important: FAO estimates that 1.66 billion hectares of land are affected by human-induced degradation, with more than 60 percent or 1 billion hectares occurring on agricultural lands, including croplands and pasturelands. As agrifood systems face growing pressure, restoring degraded agricultural land requires strong political commitment, targeted investments and coordinated action. Without restoring agricultural land, achieving global goals on land degradation neutrality (LDN), biodiversity, climate change and Zero Hunger will not be possible.
In response to this urgent challenge, FAO, together with UNCCD, has developed guidance on avoiding, reducing and reversing the degradation of agricultural lands and soil, under Decision 19 at COP16, providing practical, science-based guidance to scale up restoration of agricultural lands within agrifood systems.
FAO will also actively contribute to COP17 by organizing and co-leading high-level events, side events and technical sessions, and by engaging in key dialogues on sustainable land management, land restoration and agrifood systems transformation.
This COP17 is unique as it occurs during the United Nations International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists 2026, highlighting the importance of rangelands as critical ecosystems that support biodiversity, food systems and livelihoods as well as pastoralist communities and their role in land stewardship.
Join us at UNCCD COP17 and be part of the global effort to accelerate action on restoring degraded agricultural land and building resilient agrifood systems for people and the planet!
Agenda
Sunday, 16 August 2026
Dryland forests, trees and agrosilvopastoral approaches for drought resilience
UN House
Monday, 17 August 2026
Side event
Investing in pastoral futures: Responsible investment for resilient and healthy rangelands
MET-24
Tuesday, 18 August 2026
High level event
FAO–UNCCD Joint Initiative: Advancing land tenure for land restoration
MET-04
Special event
Closing the drought communication gap: youth harnessing media for policy-to-public action
MET-07
Thursday, 20 August 2026
Dryland forests, Rangelands and Agrosilvopastoral Systems (DReAMS) dialogues: building on the global exchange for drought resilience
Monitoring ecosystem restoration in data-scarce and arid landscapes: tools, approaches, and country experiences for evidence-based restoration
Egypt pavilion
Friday, 21 August 2026
What makes national drought plans investable
MET-07
Regional efforts supporting rangelands, pastoral communities and agro silvopastoral systems in the Near East and North Africa
Saudi Pavilion
Land degradation neutrality and ecosystem restoration: From commitments to action across landscapes
Tsagaadai Hall | Green Zone
Side event
Convergence in Action: The Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty — National Pathways for Water, Inclusion and Land Resilience
MET-01
Saturday, 22 August 2026
Side event
From Commitment to Accountability: Strengthening Land Tenure Indicators Across the Rio Conventions
MET-06
Monday, 24 August 2026Finance Day
Reducing drought vulnerability and combating desertification in the Near East and North Africa: Concerted efforts towards advancing regional cooperation for proactive risk management
Saudi Pavilion
Evidence to impact: Accelerating finance for resilient dryland forests and food systems
Tsagaadai Hall
Restoration as a shared solution: Delivering for land and biodiversity
MET-24 | Blue Zone
Scaling collective solar-powered modern irrigation systems for drought resilience and Sustainable Land Management: Egypt’s Experience as a regional model
Egypt pavilion
Co-designing a UNCCD-led toolkit for increasing public, private and blended finance through targeting and optimization
MET-22
Tuesday, 25 August 2026Water Day
From scarcity to security: Scaling integrated water and land resilience solutions in Mongolia
MET-01
Scaling integrated WEFE nexus approaches and nature-based solutions for resilient drylands
Egypt pavilion
Side event
Drylands at scale: Financing and partnerships under the GEF-7 dryland sustainable landscapes impact programme
MET-02
Wednesday, 26 August 2026Land and People Day
Rangeland restoration finance, carbon, investment and regional scale-up
Green Zone – (Tsagaadai Hall)
Side event
Indigenous Peoples’ biocentric restoration across high-value dryland biomes: From territories to Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN)
MET-06
Side event
Beyond compliance: National experiences and lessons learned from the 2026 reporting process
MET-05
High-level event
Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDC) roundtable
MET-24
FAO’s digital tools: From data to decisions - bridging knowledge, readiness and investment for drought resilience
Saudi pavilion
Advancing UNCCD's land tenure agenda: Recognising people's rights for people and planet
MET-22
Thursday, 27 August 2026Food Systems and Soil Health Day
Side event
Global youth policy brief on youth and young women in pastoralism
MET-06
High level event
Living soils, Productive lands: From policies to implementation
Launch of “The Status of the World’s Soil Resources 2026” and the FAO/UNCCD “Living Soils, Productive Lands, Resilient Landscapes: Guidance on Avoiding, Reducing and Reversing Agricultural Land and Soil Degradation”
A Global outlook for local Impact – innovation and technologies shaping the future of agrifood systems
Mongolia Pavilion (Blue Zone)
High level event
Launch of the Asian LLDCs ministerial network
MET-04
Advancing national food systems pathways through convergence for soil health and land restoration
MET-24
Official event
Youth4Soil manifesto and celebration of International Year of the Woman Farmer 2026
MET-24 (Blue Zone)
Friday, 28 August 2026
Side event
From rangelands to resilience: Indigenous peoples’ mobility, food systems and rangelands restoration for land degradation neutrality
MET-05
Explore more information on the dedicated UNCCD COP17 website
Documents
Webcasts and recordings
Press releases
Advancing solutions for land degradation, drought and food security New report warns soil degradation worsening as adoption of proven solutions lags Pastoralists are essential partners in rangeland restorationTools
Drought portal Drought Finance Tracker Drought Impact Assessment (d-iap)Elearning
Knowledge resources on integrated drought management Integrating gender equality and social inclusion in national drought management planning Economic assessment of drought risk management Drought impact assessment- Mitigation and adaptation measuresStories
International year of rangelands and pastorilists: feature stories Land, soil and water: Sustaining our precious resources while producing more with less: interactive storyRelated links
Decision 19/COP.16 on Avoiding, reducing and reversing land and soil degradation of agricultural landsStrengthening land rights to restore land: stakeholders meet in Kyrgyzstan to launch new initiative
FAO supports 21 countries to strengthen reporting on land degradation and inform decision-making Pastoralism and Livestock Adaptation to Climate Change in Eastern Africa (PLACE) programme
International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralist
Action Against Desertification UNCCD COP17 Desertification and Drought Day 2026
RAIZ call to action