African Union (AU) and United Nations (UN) officials issued an urgent call for action to address the escalating crisis of desertification and land degradation across Africa, warning that inaction could lead to ecological collapse and intensified climate-related disasters. The appeal was made during the AU Great Green Wall Initiative Experts’ and Partners’ Engagement Meeting held on Tuesday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Mithika Mwenda, Executive Director of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance, emphasized the need for immediate intervention, citing climate change, unsustainable resource exploitation, and forest ecosystem destruction as primary drivers of land degradation. “A failure to conserve habitats and halt species’ extinction will undermine the objectives of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change,” Mwenda stated, noting that significant greenhouse gas emissions stem from the destruction of forests, peatlands, wetlands, and other high-carbon ecosystems. He highlighted the alarming southward expansion of the Sahara Desert and northward growth of the Kalahari Desert as critical indicators of the need for emission reductions and sustainable resource management.

Louise Baker, Managing Director of the Global Mechanism at the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, warned that Africa’s natural resources are diminishing due to unsustainable consumption patterns. She advocated for a fundamental shift in resource use to preserve the continent’s ecosystems.

Harsen Nyambe, Director of Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment at the AU Commission, underscored the link between land degradation and increasing drought frequency. “The desert is encroaching on more land in Africa,” Nyambe told APA in an interview. “Measures must be taken to contain desert expansion and protect the livelihoods of communities in affected areas.”

The meeting also stressed the importance of implementing international environmental agreements to combat desertification, deforestation, and ecological decline. A key focus was the Great Green Wall Initiative, launched in 2007, which seeks to restore degraded landscapes and support millions of livelihoods across the continent. Officials called for accelerated efforts to achieve the initiative’s goals and safeguard Africa’s environmental future.