G7 Declaration on Desertification

Syllabus: GS3/Environment

Context

• Recently, the G7 Environment Ministers have elevated desertification, land degradation and drought to the core of their agenda, and termed these conditions ‘systemic global challenges’ and ‘security risk multipliers’.

Key Highlights of Declaration

• Scale of the Crisis: Desertification, land degradation and drought leads to declining soil fertility, water scarcity, and loss of ecosystem services.
  • It directly threatens food security and livelihoods, particularly in agrarian economies.
  • Nearly 40% of global land is degraded, affecting about 3.2 billion people.
• Environmental Stress as a Security Threat: G7 identifies desertification, land degradation and drought as a ‘security risk multiplier’.
  • Over 40% of intrastate conflicts are linked to land and water disputes.
  • Environmental degradation contributes to resource competition, forced migration, and political instability.
  • It confirms the climate-conflict nexus, especially in vulnerable regions like the Sahel.

Land Crisis in India

• Approximately 97.85 million hectares (around 29.7%) of India’s total geographical area underwent land degradation as of 2018–19 (ISRO Desertification and Land Degradation Atlas).
  • India faces desertification across around 30% of its geographical area (around 97.85 million hectares).
• Declining soil health directly threatens food and economic security, with over 40% of the population dependent on agriculture and land-based livelihoods.
• India became a signatory to the UNCCD in 1994 (ratified 1996) and has committed to restoring 26 million hectares of degraded land by 2030 under the Bonn Challenge and UNCCD framework.
  • India has already restored 18.94 million hectares against this target.

India’s Key Policy Interventions

• Aravalli Green Wall Project (2023): A green corridor across Haryana, Rajasthan, Delhi and Gujarat, inspired by Africa’s Great Green Wall.
• National Action Plan to Combat Desertification (NAPCD), revised in 2023, integrated with MGNREGS, CAMPA, and PMKSY.
• Alignment with Global Commitments (UNCCD & SDGs): India is a signatory to the UNCCD and has committed to the Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN), and restoration of millions of hectares of degraded land.
  • Desertification, land degradation and drought action supports SDG 2 (Food Security), SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 15 (Life on Land).
• Green India Mission (GIM), revised in 2025 with ₹12,190 crore outlay targeting afforestation over 1 million hectares.
• Integrated Watershed Management Programme (IWMP) under PMKSY.

Policy Commitments By G7

• Shift Towards Integrated Policy Approach: There is a need to move beyond sectoral thinking to a systems-based framework linking environment, economy and security.
  • Recognises land as central to sustainable development, climate resilience, and peacebuilding.
• Land Restoration and Drought Resilience: Scaling up sustainable land management, ecosystem restoration, and drought preparedness.
  • Ecosystem-based approaches are critical for long-term resilience.
• Financing Mechanisms: Emphasis on blended finance models ie public and private investment, aligns with global calls for green financing frameworks.
• Focus Areas Beyond Desertification: Additional declarations include biodiversity conservation, ocean protection, water management, circular economy, pollution control, and resilient infrastructure.
  • It reflects a holistic environmental governance approach.

Source: DTE