Armenian delegation participates in UNCCD 16th session of the  Conference of the Parties in Riyadh

ArmInfo.  The delegation of  the Republic of Armenia, led by the Minister of Environment, Hakob Simidyan, is participating in the 16th Conference of the Parties to  the UN Convention to Combat Desertification in Riyadh.  As reported  by the press service of the Ministry of Environment of Armenia, the  conference will be attended  by high-ranking representatives from  dozens of countries. The goal is to make important management  decisions that will elevate global ambitions for land restoration  land and resilience enhancement.

Desertification as a global environmental problem requires effective  measures, so countries are expected to outline their joint actions  during the UNCCD COP-16 to accelerate the restoration of degraded  lands by 2030 and boost drought preparedness, response and  resilience.  In this regard, the Ministry noted that the Republic of  Armenia is actively involved and strictly committed to proper  implementing the obligations assumed by the UN Convention to Combat  Desertification.

"Armenia has set a goal to achieve Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN)  to restore carbon stocks  by 2040.  This goal aims to restore the  carbon stocks lost between 2000-2010 and increase them by 2.8%  compared to the current level," the ministry mentioned.  The Ministry  of Environment also highlighted that in 2023, Yerevan hosted the  second meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group on Drought (IWG  on Drought) and a major regional capacity-building workshop. In 2024,  as the regional chair country, Armenia hosted national coordinators  and scientific representatives from Central and Eastern European  countries to discuss the draft decisions of the UNCCD COP-16.