Keynote Speech by Monique Barbut at Global LDN Forum

Distinguished Minister Jey Hoon Kim, Correst Forest Service. Distinguished Vice Minister Yoon Chou, Minister of Foreign Affairs. Distinguished Mr. Ben Kemmou, President of GGI, but more importantly, my former boss. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, it is a great honor for me to join you here today. And I would like first to start by congratulating the Correa Forest Service on the organization of the first ever global land degradation neutrality forum. It is a testament to the importance they adapt to land and forest. We certainly share a belief that if we care for the land and the forest, the land and

the

forest will in turn care for and feed our people

and

underpin

our

collective well-being

with

well-being

understood

in far more first economic terms.

So

today I would like to explore whether achieving land degradation neutrality by caring for our land and forest could also

foster

confidence

building and

underpin our collective security and peace.

I

understand a phrase by Otto von Bismarck, the renowned German statesman, which has become quite well-known in Korea in the last few months due to a series of historic summit meeting

that

have happened in the region. Bismarck said, a statesman

cannot

create anything himself.

He

must

wait

and listen

until

he hears the steps of God sounding through heavens,

then

leap up

and

grasp the hem of his garment.

There

was

a

critical moment

at

the Pan-Yu-Jong summit when Korean leaders

planted

a tree to symbolize peace and prosperity across the peninsula. But will it be enough for us to leap up and grasp the opportunity to act? We have known for a long time that land degradation destabilizes lives and livelihoods.

Land

degradation undermines the well-being

of

two-fifths of humanity, some 3.2 billion people.

It

is driving species expansion

and

intensifying climate change.

It

is also

a

major contributor

to

mass human migration and a root cause of increased competition and conflict over access to natural resources.

And

it is set to get worse.

With

a population

racing

towards 10 billions by 2050,

we

will need to provide

more

food and energy

and

access to water and jobs

to

meet our growing needs. Asia and Africa will be on the front lines of this exploding demand with ballooning populations.

But

meeting that demand is going to be

especially

tough

when

more than 50% of all agricultural land is already

degraded. The

amount

of

productive land available per person

is

already at critical levels. And each year, millions of hectares of cropped lands are lost entirely due to soil erosion and land degradation. In South Asia alone, land degradation causes $10 billion in annual loss.

While

in the volatile West Asia region, two-thirds of the countries are below the water scarcity limit of 1,000 cubic meters per person per year. The region has already surpassed its natural capacity to meet its own food and water demand. While in Africa, competition for access to land

has

led to outright conflict

in

Darfur or around Lake Chad.

Land

issues readily lend themselves to country. Land is an important economic asset and source of livelihoods for up to 80% of the population in the majority of the countries of the world.

It

is also closely linked to community identity, history

and

culture.

communities

can therefore be

easily

mobilized

and

manipulated around the land.

It

is time

to

make the case

that

investing in land

is

a tool for peace building.

Practical

steps

can

prevent grievance

from

turning into violent conflict.

with

the right institutions

and

governance systems

to

manage land efficiently, equitably

and

sustainably, all is possible.

Indeed, the

shared management of water, land, forest, wildlife and protected area are frequently cited examples of environmental cooperation for peace building. The most famous example of environmental conservation as a way to mediate hostility between nations is the Cordillera Condo between Peru and Ecuador. In 1999, Ecuador established the El Condor Park, while Peru created an Ecological Protection Zone and the Santiago Comeno Reserve Zone.

These

peace parks were established as mechanism for bilateral cooperation. They were used to promote the social, cultural and economic development of local community in both countries.

In

addition

to

helping to resolve

a

long-term territorial dispute

between

the two countries,

the

agreement initiated an important

phase of

bilateral diplomacy, cooperation

and

commercial relation in the post-conflict phase.

Yesterday,

we heard here our inspiring stories

about

cross-border collaboration to reduce tensions and create confidence. I am thinking, for example, of the Pantanal wetland case. The clear lesson is where countries emerging from conflict have addressed land and water issue effectively, they have laid the foundation for a durable

peace. Based

on those experiences, you could imagine similar shared management of resources across Africa or Asia. It will need a bold vision and flexible governance arrangement, but I have no doubt it will facilitate cooperation between the countries involved.

And

in a global system striving to achieve the sustainable development goals, the target of land degradation neutrality could have an important role to play in that regard.

And

at

the

end

is

an accelerator for the achievement of many SDGs and for greater climate resilience. Because it seeks to maintain or enhance

the

quality of all ecosystem services, optimizing trade-offs

and

applying an integrated land views planning principle that can cross traditional boundaries.

A

general strength of NDN

is

that it also emphasizes the importance of the human dimension, land users, stakeholder groups and institutions in land use planning and development.

As

it is a participatory and inclusive process,

it

can be used to systematically address conflict as they arise between parties with diverging ambitions. Because from a peace building perspective, whether or not these differences become a source of division and violent conflict or an opportunity for positive change and growth depends on how they are understood and addressed. The idea of land degradation neutrality was actually first at COP10 in Shanghai in Korea in 2011. With the adoption of the UNCCD 2018-2030 strategic framework, LDN is now fully integrated in the work of UNCCD. It's country parties are encouraged to establish voluntary national LDN target and pursue implementation. Today, nearly 120 countries have committed to do so.

As countries identify hotspots of land degradation as part of the target setting process,

they

are also seeing

a

clear correlation

between

degradation, migration and conflict.

And

it has led to systematically attempts, especially in Africa,

to

address issues

of

sustainability, stability and security.

The

3S initiative in Africa

is

an actual attempt to manage the impact of land degradation and climate change in vulnerable hotspot areas by conserving, sustainably managing and rehabilitating degraded land.

14

countries are part of this initiative and have committed to rehabilitate 10 million hectares of land and create 2 million jobs for migrants and ex-combatants. United Nations studies on the relationship between natural resources and disarmament, demobilization and reintegration. I found that 50% of former combatants participating in reintegration program choose agriculture. In some cases actually, the proportion was as high as 80% as they weighed back into their communities. It underlines the opportunities offered by LDN to focus on the rehabilitation of degraded land to first stabilize and then transform society. You would clearly have to see how and if this model would work in your region.

Could

you envisage rehabilitating land and forest in Korea together as a way to build long-term peace and cross-border understanding? Could a peace forest initiative emerge? I believe yes, as both Koreas are active parties to the UNCCD and can embrace LDN together on their journey towards permanent peace, security and prosperity for all. Thank you for your attention.

Thank you for

coming.

I believe you're in case, long time, left to