Middle-East model for land restoration

At a time when political instability dominates the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, climate change, floods, and fires tend to get less attention than usual. And the problems of desertification and droughts almost become forgotten.

- Nizar Haddad

But this neglect is not only unjustified, it is dangerous. While desertification and droughts are slow-moving and less dramatic than wars, floods, and fires, they are just as devastating. Just ask the more than 500 million people living in the MENA region who must cope with them each day.

Whereas healthy land produces food, retains water, absorbs carbon, and supports livelihoods, degraded land does not. And from the Atlas Mountains to the Tigris-Euphrates river valley, the MENA region features some of the driest and most rapidly degrading landscapes on Earth. With temperatures in the region rising nearly twice as fast as the global average, water scarcity, extreme heatwaves, and desertification are increasingly shaping everyday life. Add to that some of the world's fastest-growing populations, and the risks to food security, economic stability, and social cohesion will only grow.