• Every year on June 17th, the World Day to battle Desertification and Drought is marked to raise public awareness of global efforts to battle desertification. The event provides an opportunity to acknowledge that land degradation neutrality is attainable via problem-solving, significant community involvement, and cooperation at all levels.
• The theme of the International Day Against Desertification, and Drought 2023 is “Her land. Her rights”
• The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) first discussed this day in December 1994 in order to tackle desertification and drought. This day was observed in 1995 for the first time.

DESERTIFICATION:

• Desertification is “the degradation of dry, semi-arid and sub-humid lands resulting from various factors, such as climatic variations and human activities”, as defined by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).
• In other words, land is desertified when it can no longer support the same plant growth it had in the past, and the change is permanent on a human time scale.

DROUGHT:

• Drought is the deficit of rainfall over a long period, such as a season, a year or several years, related to the statistical average of a region.
• The lack of rainfall produces a water deficit for humans, animals, and plants.

CAUSES OF DESERTIFICATION

• ‘Climatic variations’ and ‘Human activities’ can be regarded as the two main causes of desertification.
• Climatic variations: Climate change, drought, moisture loss on a global level
• Human activities: These include overgrazing, deforestation and removal of the natural vegetation cover, agricultural activities in the vulnerable ecosystems of arid and semi-arid areas, which are thus strained beyond their capacity.