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Water Library - Desertification and Drought
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Desertification is not the natural expansion of existing deserts but the degradation of land in arid, semi-arid, and dry sub-humid areas. It is a gradual process of soil productivity loss and the thinning out of the vegetative cover because of human activities and climatic variations.
Desertification already affects one quarter of the total land surface of the globe today. Over the past 20 years, the surface area lost is equal to all of the farmland of the United States of America. Roughly one third of the world’s land surface is threatened by desertification. Estimates are that in 2025 the decline of arable land available will be two-thirds in Africa, one-third in Asia, and about one-fifth in South America.
The livelihoods of one billion people are threatened and many of them are at risk of being displaced.
 Learning to combat desertification
.PDF Source MAB website
This educational kit on desertification is principally targeted to teachers of primary school education and their pupils, aged 10-12 years old. Its positive approach demonstrates that desertification is not inevitable and that everyone, at his or her own level, has a role to play in Earth's future. It includes a teacher's guide, a set of case studies, two cartoons and a wall poster.
Language(s) English, French, Spanish Contact MAB programme
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 CRID: Information Resources on Water and Disasters
A CD online produced conjointly by three organization working on water and disasters in the Americas. It contains the full text of selected documents on topics as diverse as water quality, disaster prevention in water systems, the impact of floods and drought, and more.
Language(s) Spanish |
FAO website on Desertification
This website contains technical and scientific data and information, available at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), as well as links to a number of highly informative resources on desertification.
Language(s) Arabic, English, French, Spanish |
UNDP Drylands Web
This website, maintained by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), provides a quick overview on drylands development issues, the history of the newly created Dryland Development Centre, concepts and programme information, newsletters, lessons learned and practices, knowledge sharing and news and events.
Language(s) English |
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Desertification
The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification defines the term desertification as 'land degradation in arid, semi-arid and sub-humid areas resulting from various factors including climatic variations and human activities'. |
Erosion
A phenomenon resulting from the action of the wind (wind erosion) or from water (hydraulic erosion) that brings about the removal of top soil and the degradation of rocks. |
Rainforest
Luxuriant forest, generally composed of tall, broad-leaved trees and usually found in wet tropical uplands and lowlands around the Equator. |
Salinisation
A net increase of the salt content of the soil leading to a productivity decline. Salinity problems are due either to intrusion of seawater or to inland salinisation, mainly caused by improper irrigation methods. |
 Facts and Figures: Desertification and Drought
The World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought, celebrated every year the 17th of June, marks the anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), in 1992, based on a recommendation of the Rio Earth Summit. |
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