BRIEFING SESSION HELD

On 11 June, the Permanent Mission of Mongolia to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva held a briefing for Permanent Representatives and Ambassadors at the headquarters of the World Trade Organization on the seventeenth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17), to be convened in Ulaanbaatar from 17 to 28 August 2026 under the theme “Restoring Land, Restoring Hope.”

Opening the briefing, H.E. Ms. Gerelmaa Davaasuren, Permanent Representative of Mongolia to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva, delivered remarks. She noted that Mongolia’s hosting of the Conference in Ulaanbaatar stands as not only a significant contribution to multilateral environmental cooperation, but also an important opportunity to amplify, at the international level, the voices of countries vulnerable to the adverse impacts of desertification, land degradation, and climate change, as well as to discuss common challenges and solutions.

Ms. Yasmine Fouad, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, briefed participants on the objectives, significance, and expected outcomes of the Conference, as well as opportunities for international engagement. She underscored that UNCCD COP17 in Ulaanbaatar will make an important contribution to identifying collective solutions in such areas as land restoration, drought risk reduction, enhanced access to financing, and stronger linkages between science-based policy and implementation. She further noted that the Conference will help advance progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals and provide renewed momentum to multilateral cooperation.

During the briefing, participants exchanged views on opportunities to expand cooperation in the context of the upcoming Conference.