ESCWA Publication: E/ESCWA/CL1.CCS/2024/Factsheet.1
Country: Arab region, Lebanese Republic, State of Palestine, Republic of Sudan, Republic of Yemen
Publication Type: Information material
Cluster: Climate Change and Natural Resource Sustainability
Focus Area: Climate change, Natural resource sustainability
Initiatives: Climate Resilience through Regional Cooperation, Arab Centre for Climate Change Policies, Yemen Vision for Recovery and Development, Development challenges, Support to the Palestinian people
SDGs: Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities, Goal 13: Climate Action, Goal 15: Life On Land
Keywords: Agricultural land, Armed conflicts, Land degradation, Displaced persons, Environmental damage, Environmental degradation, Humanitarian assistance, Land policy, Lebanon, Legal aspects, Natural resources, Sudan, Yemen, Territories occupied by israel
Conflict in the Arab region degrading the land, threatening the future
July 2024
The 2024 World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought will be celebrated under the theme “United for Land. Our Legacy. Our Future,” emphasizing the crucial role of land stewardship in ensuring the stability and prosperity of billions worldwide. In alignment with this year’s theme, this fact sheet explores how conflicts exacerbate land degradation and hinder efforts to reverse it, affecting the lives of current and future generations in affected areas.
Many countries in the Arab region are suffering from ongoing conflicts and occupation, making it the region with the largest displaced population in the world and leading to severe disruptions in land management and increased degradation. With reduced law enforcement, violations of land-management regulations are on the rise. In refugee camps and abandoned areas, unsustainable practices such as illegal cultivation, overgrazing, poaching, and deforestation are rampant. These activities, compounded by direct damage from military operations, contaminate and degrade the land, accelerating soil erosion and loss of biodiversity.
This fact sheet provides an overview of the multifaceted impact of conflicts on land degradation in the Arab region, highlighting long-term consequences for local communities and ecosystems through case studies from Lebanon, Yemen, Gaza, the Sudan, and the Syrian Arab Republic. It also suggests pathways to achieving sustainable land management and recovery, emphasizing the need for an integrated approach that balances immediate humanitarian needs with long-term environmental sustainability.
Related content
Climate change
, Natural resource sustainability
,
The 2024 World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought will be celebrated under the theme “United for Land. Our Legacy. Our Future,” emphasizing the crucial role of land stewardship in ensuring the stability and prosperity of billions worldwide. In alignment with this year’s theme, this fact sheet explores how conflicts exacerbate land degradation and hinder efforts to reverse it, affecting the lives of current and future generations in affected areas.
Many countries in the Arab region are suffering from ongoing conflicts and occupation, making it the region with the largest displaced population in the world and leading to severe disruptions in land management and increased degradation. With reduced law enforcement, violations of land-management regulations are on the rise. In refugee camps and abandoned areas, unsustainable practices such as illegal cultivation, overgrazing, poaching, and deforestation are rampant. These activities, compounded by direct damage from military operations, contaminate and degrade the land, accelerating soil erosion and loss of biodiversity.
This fact sheet provides an overview of the multifaceted impact of conflicts on land degradation in the Arab region, highlighting long-term consequences for local communities and ecosystems through case studies from Lebanon, Yemen, Gaza, the Sudan, and the Syrian Arab Republic. It also suggests pathways to achieving sustainable land management and recovery, emphasizing the need for an integrated approach that balances immediate humanitarian needs with long-term environmental sustainability.
