By the Witness Radio Team.

Protecting forests, breathing new life into exhausted land, and confronting climate change hinge not only on policies but on whether those who live on the land truly hold secure rights to it.

The challenge is significant. Between 2015 and 2019, at least 100 million hectares of healthy, productive land were degraded worldwide each year, affecting about 1.3 billion people, according to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). A 2026 global assessment by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Land Coalition (ILC), and the French agricultural research organization CIRAD found that only 35 percent of the world’s land has formally documented ownership, tenure, or use rights. These figures highlight the scale of land degradation and the gaps in recognizing and documenting people’s land rights.

Across Africa, communities depend on farmland, forests, and grazing lands not just for food, but to keep their traditions and livelihoods alive. When climate and environmental policies ignore their rights to these resources, their power to protect the land and shape its destiny fades.

This is why land rights advocates across Africa are calling for land governance to be more deeply woven into climate action and conservation, insisting that securing people’s land rights is the foundation for protecting the environment.

The issue was discussed during an online webinar organized by ILC Africa in partnership with the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the German development agency GIZ. Practitioners and policy actors shared experiences from several African countries on integrating land governance into climate and environmental policies.

Ms. Johanna von Braun, People, Climate and Nature Lead at the International Land Coalition, explained that land rights are fundamental to achieving the objectives of the three major global environmental conventions addressing climate change, biodiversity loss and desertification.

She said secure land rights can support emissions reduction, help communities adapt to climate change and strengthen biodiversity conservation. In the Amazon, she noted, research shows that recognizing Indigenous peoples’ territories helps protect tropical forests and preserve carbon sinks.

“For mitigation, we know now that with land rights, we can ensure the protection of critical carbon sinks,” Ms. von Braun said.

Land rights are equally important for communities whose livelihoods depend on adapting to changing environmental conditions. Ms. von Braun explained that pastoralist communities with secure rights to move their livestock are better positioned to respond to climate change and manage grazing areas sustainably.

Evidence on rangeland loss reinforces this connection. Research has found that 92 percent of rangeland loss through land-use conversion between 2016 and 2024 occurred in areas where Indigenous peoples’ and local communities’ land rights were not secure, were unknown, or the land fell outside mapped community territories, facts which highlight the importance of recognizing community land rights in efforts to protect rangelands and strengthen climate resilience.

Ms. von Braun also pointed to Namibia, where communal conservancies cover about 20 percent of the country and support biodiversity conservation. She said community-based conservation initiatives can help countries advance global biodiversity commitments, including the 30×30 target to conserve at least 30 percent of the world’s land and sea by 2030.

Despite the clear connection between land rights and environmental protection, bringing land governance into national climate policies remains a persistent and difficult challenge.

Moise Mbimbe, a regional program analyst with ILC Africa, described efforts to address this gap in Burkina Faso, Liberia, Togo and Senegal.

With catalytic funding, the coalition ignited efforts to weave land governance into countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which serve as blueprints for their climate commitments under the Paris Agreement. This meant reviewing policies, amplifying community voices, and bringing together a wide range of actors to shape recommendations that place land issues at the core of national climate plans.

Mr. Mbimbe said the process had helped participating countries consider land governance.

“Whether it’s in Togo, Burkina Faso or Liberia, we have made considerable progress when it comes to taking or considering land when it comes to NDCs,” he said.

In Burkina Faso, an assessment of the country’s previous climate commitments revealed that land governance had received limited attention.

Mr. Blaise Bama, coordinator of the Multi-Stakeholder Platform on Land (PMAF) in Burkina Faso, said the assessment reviewed policy documents and gathered perspectives from institutional, community, and regional stakeholders.

The findings pointed to significant gaps in how the country’s previous NDC addressed land issues.

“This assessment identified a very weak level where land was not considered in the previous NDC,” Mr. Bama said. assessment recommended recognizing the central role of land rights in climate action and securing community land rights. Mr. Bama added that local consultations allowed community-level actors to share their views and contribute to the policy process.

“It was a moment of close analysis, and these local consultations allow us to consider the opinions of local actors, especially at the community level,” he said.

In Senegal, practitioners are forging new links between land governance, environmental restoration, and active local community participation.

Ms. Nicole Chaby Hary, facilitator of the National Land Governance Platform (PNGF), said consultations revealed that land security and environmental restoration are top priorities. Yet, motivating communities to invest in restoration has proven difficult, highlighting the need for practical tools, clear responsibilities, and authentic participation.

She emphasized that women, youth, local leaders, government bodies, and all stakeholders must have a seat at the table when managing and restoring land.

“We have to put in place tools, like pastoral units, to help with consultations and community responsibilities, especially for women and youth,” Ms. Hary said.

In Madagascar, efforts are underway to ensure that community rights are reflected in biodiversity policies and implementation.

Ms. Stefana Raharijaona, a senior program officer at Natural Justice Madagascar, said the organization has worked to incorporate local communities’ concerns into national biodiversity priorities and translate them into monitorable actions.

This work has meant championing the recognition of community rights and land tenure, supporting community-led management, and striving to formalize and protect these hard-earned rights.

Ms. Raharijaona also described efforts to support implementation of Madagascar’s National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, including work related to Target 22 and the establishment of a national biodiversity platform to improve coordination among the different actors involved.

Across these countries, practitioners confront a common challenge: climate and biodiversity goals will stay out of reach unless the rights of those who depend on and nurture the land are genuinely recognized.

As African nations strengthen their environmental policies, securing community land rights and ensuring meaningful participation in decision-making will be essential to protect ecosystems, heal damaged land, and build resilience to climate change.

By the Witness Radio Team

With fewer than four years left to meet global biodiversity targets, a new United Nations assessment urges country to accelerate efforts to protect and restore nature, warning that current efforts fall short of promises.

The State of Biodiversity Action report, released just before the 17th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17) in Armenia, reveals that while almost 90 percent of countries have set national biodiversity targets, less than half are making progress toward achieving them.

COP17 starts today in Yerevan, Armenia, and runs until October 30, 2026.

As the conference opens, the findings cast doubt on whether countries can fulfill the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, adopted in 2022 to stop and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030.

The Framework addresses the principal drivers of biodiversity loss, including land- and sea-use change, unsustainable exploitation of species, climate change, pollution and invasive alien species, as well as economic and financial activities contributing to biodiversity loss.

A key ambition of the framework is to safeguard at least 30 percent of the world’s land and sea by 2030. The assessment reveals that current pledges fall short. Even if all commitments are met, just 26 percent of land and 12 percent of marine ecosystems would be protected by the deadline.

The gap between promises and progress was highlighted by Astrid Schomaker, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity, who called on governments to use the global review to identify shortcomings and accelerate implementation.

“We know where we stand. We know where the gaps are. Now we must work together to close them,” Ms. Schomaker said.

Her words highlight the conference’s core challenge. Countries know what must be done, but meaningful action is still lagging.

The assessment points to gaps in funding, coordination among government bodies, and the data needed to measure progress. It also shows that targets requiring action beyond environment ministries, such as business practices, sustainable consumption, harmful incentives, and finance, are falling furthest behind.

To meet the 2030 targets, governments must integrate biodiversity concerns into broader economic and development choices.

At the opening of COP17 on 19 October, the outgoing Colombian presidency also stressed the need to turn international agreements into practical results.

David Olarte Amaya, who represented Colombia’s COP16 presidency, described the gathering in Yerevan as a decisive moment for the planet, noting that the international community had an urgent responsibility to turn the framework’s commitments into “concrete, measurable, and lasting results.”

He also stressed that biodiversity is deeply connected to daily life, underpinning water and food security, resilient communities, thriving economies, and the well-being of society.

“Biodiversity is not merely an environmental concern but also the foundation of our water and food security, the resilience of our territories, the productivity of our economies, and the well-being of our societies,” he stressed.

He noted that the true measure of the conference’s success will not be the number of decisions made, but whether they spark real change in countries and communities.

“Today, as we hand over the COP16 presidency, Colombia reaffirms its commitment to solution-oriented multilateralism, grounded in dialogue, mutual respect among parties, and shared responsibilities. We express our confidence in Armenia’s leadership and our readiness to contribute constructively to the work of this conference,” he added.

Armenia’s Minister of Environment and incoming COP17 president, Mr. Hambardzum Matevosyan, recognized that countries must now focus on what works, where progress is lacking, and what must change to accelerate results.

“COP 15 gave us the framework. COP 16 advanced important mechanisms for its implementation. COP 17 must now help us determine where we stand, what is working, where progress is falling short, and what must change to accelerate implementation,” Mr. Matevosyan said.

He praised Colombia’s COP16 presidency and described the handover as a seamless continuation of the global push for biodiversity.

Mr. Matevosyan also highlighted the Leaders for Nature Summit in Yerevan, which concluded with the Yerevan Declaration—a call to action for nature and a reminder to turn promises into tangible outcomes.

Staying true to the promise of an inclusive COP, Matevosyan pledged that Armenia’s presidency would listen to Indigenous Peoples, local communities, women, youth, civil society, academia, local leaders, businesses, and the finance sector, recognizing that governments cannot tackle biodiversity loss on their own.

“The challenges we face are too big to be addressed by governments alone. The story, the parallel forums, thematic days, and numerous side events will inform and support negotiation outcomes,” he concluded.

As the 2030 deadline looms, the real test is whether countries can move from promises to action and deliver the transformation needed to stop and reverse biodiversity loss. The Yerevan review gives governments a chance to face the gaps, build stronger partnerships, and turn words into measurable progress for nature and all who rely on it.

KAMPALA — The Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development has introduced stricter procedures for replacing lost, destroyed or damaged land titles, requiring public notices, physical inspections and stronger verification to curb fraud and protect legitimate landowners.