Fire has historically played a crucial role in Southern Africa, especially in the drylands, where communities have depended on fire for cooking, warmth and cultural practices. However these landscapes are undergoing rapid transformation due to climate change, shifts in land use, and growing human activity, all of which have led to increased frequency and intensity of wildfires.

The Miombo woodlands in Tanzania, which account for approximately 90 percent of the country’s total forest cover, are vital ecosystems. However, due to unsustainable land-use practices, they are facing significant degradation. The Dryland and Sustainable Landscapes Impact Program (DSL-IP) aims to reverse this trend by engaging forest and farm producers in restoration efforts across the Sikonge, Urambo, Kaliua Districts (Tabora Region), and Mlele District (Katavi Region). 

Land degradation is a pressing issue in Botswana, with nearly half of the country’s forests under threat from unsustainable practices like overgrazing, cultivation, fuelwood harvesting, ecologically harmful Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) extraction, and wildfires. These activities threaten th...

[Blantyre, Malawi] – 29 July-02 August 2024 – Over one hundred cross-sectoral stakeholders including land users, government officials, technical partners and project implementers from ten different countries across dryland ecoregions gathered in the Warm Heart of Africa (Malawi) on 29 July for the second regional stakeholders workshop for Southern Africa under the GEF-7 Sustainable Forest Management Impact Program on Dryland Sustainable Landscapes (DSL-IP).  

Blantyre, Malawi – Government officials, experts and landscape managers from across Southern Africa met today for a week of discussions on the challenges and solutions for drylands in the region organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and partners.

Through its partnership with the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is investing in the legacy of our lands by helping countries and communities scale up sustainable agrifood system solutions to reduce and reverse land degradation ...

The Side Event “Resilient Pastures for Land Degradation Neutrality in Central Asia” was held 
at the 21st Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the UNCCD (CRIC21) taking place from 13 to 17 November 2023 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

The side event was co-organised by IUCN,...

Now in its third year of implementation, the GEF-7 Dryland Sustainable Landscapes Impact Program continues its journey, with activities ongoing in nine out of 11 countries and coordination structures in full swing.

Dr. Batkhuu Nyam-Osor is the current chair of the Committee on Forestry (COFO) Working Group (WG) on Dryland Forests and Agrosilvopastoral Systems (COFO WG), and was appointed in the third Session of the Working Group, celebrated in Jordan in 2023. He represents Mongolia in the COFO as advisor...

The project “Promoting Dryland Sustainable Landscapes and Biodiversity Conservation in the Eastern Steppe of Mongolia” (“Eastern Steppe project”) is one of the 11 child projects under the GEF-7 Dryland Sustainable Landscapes Impact Program and led by FAO in partnership with WWF as GEF implementing agencies and country level, and executed by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) in collaboration with other partners.

Nurturing Community of Knowledge Practice for Women in Dryland Forests and Agrosilvopastoral Systems (WeCaN) wrapped up a series of knowledge-sharing sessions on gender-responsive pasture management practices. The primary goals of the sessions were to emphasize the key role women play in leadi...

The GEF-7 Drylands Sustainable Landscapes Impact Program (DSL-IP) prioritizes gender-responsiveness and women's empowerment as an essential part of its programmatic support to the 11 country projects across Africa and Asia. The program focuses on boosting the resilience of dryland production syst...

The rangelands of Central Asia are described as the largest contiguous area of grazed land in the world, serving as an important source of livelihood for pastoral and agro-pastoral communities in this region. These rangelands are also important in carbon regulation as they absorb CO2. 

The DSL-IP presented the One Country Champion, One Core Theme approach at the IYM Closing Ceremony! Read here to learn more about the event. 

The inaugural workshops of the Dryland Sustainable Landscapes Impact Programme (DSL-IP) were successfully held in the Chobe and Tutume sub-basins on 15 December 2023 and 18 January 2024, respectively. This programme is implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FA...