India can provide leadership in dealing drought: UNCCD

India has tremendous potential to turn challenges like desertification and droughts into opportunities through improved land use and management, and provide the leadership the world needs to take bold actions, according to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification.

Remarks by Monique Barbut, the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), came as he announced that India would host the next global Conference on desertification, land degradation and drought.

The conference would be held from October 7 to 18 at the Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi.

Participants from 197 Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) will have access, for the first time, to a wealth of vital new scientific data.

They will have access to Earth Observation data on the trends in land degradation dating from 2000, gathered from 120 of the 169 countries affected by desertification.

They will also receive the first report on desertification and climate change prepared by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the global authority on climate change.

"India is one of the countries affected by desertification, and is facing new challenges, among which are recurrent droughts and dust and sand storms. The country has tremendous potential to turn these challenges into opportunities through improved land use and management, and to provide the leadership the world needs to take bold actions," said Barbut.