Arya News - UNCCD COP17 wrapped August 28 in Ulaanbaatar with agreements on drought policy and a post-2030 roadmap amid growing desertification and land-degradation challenges. Host Mongolia also helped put rangelands and pastoralists on the international agenda.
ULAANBAATAR – The 17th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17) was successfully held in Ulaanbaatar on August 17-28, 2026, under the theme “Restoring Land, Restoring Hope.”
During the two-week conference, Parties held extensive discussions on addressing desertification, land degradation, and the growing challenges of drought, as well as restoring degraded land, promoting sustainable rangeland management, increasing financial resources, and strengthening international cooperation.
As a result of the COP17 negotiations, Parties reached common positions on a wide range of issues and adopted resolutions and decisions important to the future implementation of the Convention.
Among the key outcomes were decisions concerning the final report of the Intergovernmental Working Group on the Future Strategic Framework of the Convention, the policy framework on drought, the continuation of the process of developing the Convention’s strategic framework beyond 2030, and measures to improve the effectiveness of the work of the Conference of the Parties and its subsidiary bodies.
The Plenary also adopted a resolution expressing gratitude to the Government and people of Mongolia for successfully hosting COP17.
At Mongolia’s initiative, the United Nations General Assembly declared 2026 the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists. In this context, the sustainable management, protection, and restoration of rangelands, as well as strengthening the participation of rangeland users and herders, were emphasized in the outcomes of COP17. This further highlighted the importance of rangeland issues on the international policy agenda.
As the host country of COP17, Mongolia played an active role throughout the conference in reconciling the differing positions of Parties, supporting consensus-building, and conducting negotiations in an open, transparent, and inclusive manner.
Although COP17 has concluded, efforts to continue the cooperation initiated in Ulaanbaatar and translate the adopted decisions into tangible results will continue.
Over the next two years, Mongolia, as the host country of COP17, will work closely with Parties and international partners to strengthen implementation of the Convention, expand multilateral cooperation, and contribute to practical solutions for combating desertification, land degradation, and drought.