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Rome – 25 million trees planted, 53 000 hectares brought under restoration, 700 000 people reached. This is the balance of five years of regreening drylands in the Sahel and the Sahara by an innovative FAO restoration scheme called Action Against Desertification. For the coming 10 years, it is gearing [...]

Nasavu, Fiji - Today in Fiji, land degradation causes more than 50 tons of soil per hectare to erode annually, four times the average for tropical regions. But if you ask Asinate Drauyawa Waqabitu about the health of the land, this 56-year-old leader of the women’s group in Nasavu village [...]

Rome - Lola Vrydagh and Maxime Vankoningsloo travelled to Senegal to assess the impact of land restoration activities of Action Against Desertification. With their work, the students from UCL (Université Catholique de Louvain) reinforce partnership between UCL and FAO, aiming to build bridges between science and development in support of [...]

Arba, Ethiopia – “Not so long ago, the hills had fertile soils and were covered with trees,” says Teka Hayelom, a father of four from the village of Arba in the Tigray region, about 560 km north of Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. Recalling the past, Teka laments the harsh reality of [...]

Khartoum – Four Eastern African countries have committed to restore over 3 000 hectares of degraded land this year. The pledge was made in Khartoum, where experts and partners of countries supporting Africa’s Great Green Wall initiative discussed ways to boost land restoration in 2019. The experts convened at a meeting from [...]

Djibo, Burkina Faso – Science is key to FAO’s Action Against Desertification efforts in making degraded land green and productive again. Barkissa Fofana believes that microbiology can help and is carrying out research to prove it. An inspiring journey to the frontline of the battle against climate change and desertification.“Something [...]

Accra – Rural communities in Africa’s drylands can earn a decent income from forest products such as gum arabic or tree oils. According to a new report from Action Against Desertification, rural populations have the opportunity to increase their incomes while reversing land degradation through sufficient support and investment, and [...]

Rome - At the Nobel Peace Prize Forum 2018 on how to solve the climate crisis of December last year, FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva said the Organization lacks funding to scale up its efforts to expand Africa’s Great Green Wall. A major obstacle for implementing climate change adaptation measures [...]

Sampelga, Burkina Faso - "Here we eat the fruit of the Balanites tree," says Hadjatou Ouedraogo, a farmer in her fifties from the village of Sampelga in Burkina Faso’s northern Sahel region. She takes a piece of nut from the container in her hand and adds: "And we used to [...]

Mbar Toubab, Senegal - In three years, Action Against Desertification has restored 5 400 hectares of degraded land in the drylands of northern Senegal. The inhabitants of Mbar Toubab have been able to improve their lives while adapting to climate change. "Before we started working in the villages, there were no [...]