AU, UN urge immediate action to halt desertification in Africa

The African Union (AU) and United Nations (UN) have called for urgent action to combat accelerating desertification and land degradation across Africa, warning that inaction could lead to ecological collapse and worsen climate-related disasters.

The call was made during the AU Great Green Wall Initiative Experts’ and Partners’ Engagement Meeting held Tuesday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Pan African Climate Justice Alliance Executive Director Mithika Mwenda underscored the need for swift intervention, citing climate change, unsustainable resource use, and deforestation as major drivers of the continent’s worsening land degradation.

He warned that the rapid southward expansion of the Sahara Desert and the northward spread of the Kalahari Desert serve as stark reminders of the need to reduce carbon emissions and implement sustainable land management practices.