UNEA-4 resolution on sustainable rangelands & pastoralism

At its 4th session in March 2019, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) passed Resolution L17 “Innovations in Sustainable Rangelands and Pastoralism”. This was originally proposed by the Government of Kenya and was supported by the Africa Group. It is a significant achievement to have a UNEA resolution specifically on rangelands and pastoralism.

The Resolution recognises the process working towards an International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP), which the Government of Mongolia initiated in 2018 through FAO’s Committee on Agriculture (COAG). In addition, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has been requested to assist countries that would like to make regional assessments of rangelands and pastoralism. This is in response to the report “A case of benign neglect”, which identified gaps in information on rangelands and pastoralism globally. The Resolution acknowledges the value of traditional pastoralist knowledge, including indigenous grazing and herding mechanisms and institutions.

The final text of the resolutions in the five United Nations languages can be found here.

Several members of the International Support Group (ISG) for the IYRP organised a Ministerial Breakfast Meeting during UNEA-4 to promote the Resolution. A brief report on the meeting by ISG member Fiona Flintan (International Land Coalition/International Livestock Research Institute) can be found here.

CELEP – likewise a member of the ISG –  was involved in lobbying for support for this Resolution.

Posted on 19 March 2019 in General Policy Documents, Pastoral Research & Innovation, Pastoralism & Natural Resources, Value of Pastoralism