UNCCD 2nd Scientific Conference

1. The GEF Land Degradation Focal Area
– Enhancing Ecosystem Services in Production
Landscapes
Mohamed I Bakarr
GEF Secretariat, Washington DC
Presented at the GEF/STAP Session on “Carbon – A valuable global benefit of SLM”
UNCCD 2nd Scientific Conference, Bonn, Germany; April 9-12, 2013

2. Land Degradation Focal Area
Mandate – Finance efforts to arrest and reverse
land degradation, specifically desertification and
deforestation
Focus – Sustainable Land Management (SLM)
in production landscapes
Impacts:
• Ecosystem service flows increased or maintained
• Sustained crop, livestock, and forest production
• Sustainable livelihoods (development benefit)

3. Drylands of the World
Arid Semi-arid Dry Sub-humid GEF Projects focusing on SLM
Source: UNEP/GRID-Arendal Maps and Graphics Library (http://www.wri.org/publication/content/8236)

4. Sustainable Land Management
• “….a knowledge-based procedure that integrates land,
water, biodiversity, and environmental management to
meet rising food and fiber demands while sustaining
livelihoods and the environment ” (World Bank 2006).

5. Advancing SLM Implementation
Agroforestry Forest Landscape Management
Rangeland Management
Forest Landscape Restoration Living sand barrier Contour Terrace

6. Multiple Benefits through SLM
Ecosystem Services in Production Systems
– Soil health improvement
– Land and water conservation
– Biodiversity conservation - above and below ground
– Reduced GHG emissions and carbon sequestration
Development
– Climate-resilient production systems
– Options for household food security and income

7. Multi-focal Area Projects
• LAND DEGRADATION: Maintain/improve flow of
ecosystem services in production systems; Integrated
approaches to reduce pressure from competing uses
Deliver multiple environmental and social benefits,
seeking synergy with –
• BIODIVERSITY: Protected areas, Mainstreaming, and
Sustainable use of biodiversity
• CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION: Land use, Land use
change, and Forestry component for reducing GHG
emissions and carbon sequestration
• CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION (LDCF/SCCF):
Adaptation and resilience in the
agriculture, livestock, and food security sectors

8. SFM/REDD-plus Program
Goal: Achieve multiple environmental benefits
from improved management of all types of
forests
 Funding derives from three GEF
Focal Areas - Biodiversity,
Climate Change and Land
Degradation
 Separate funding envelope
created to provide incentive
funding for interested countries

9. Typology of LDFA investments
LD-stand alone Multifocal area SFM/REDD+
Focus: Agriculture and Focus: Integrated Focus: Carbon benefits in
Rangeland Management Landscape Management forests Landscapes
China: Sustainable and Ecuador: Promotion of Azerbaijan: Sustainable
Climate-Resilient Land Climate-Smart Livestock Land and Forest
Management in Western Management Management in the Greater
PRC Caucasus Landscape
Pakistan: Sustainable Land Kazakhstan: Improving Kenya: Development of SFM
Management Program to Sustainability of PA System and Support to REDD for
Combat Desertification in Desert Ecosystems Drylands Forests
Uzbekistan: Reducing Turkey: Sustainable Land Mongolia: Securing Forest
Pressures on Natural Management and Climate Ecosystems through
Resources from Friendly Agriculture Participatory Management
Competing Land Use and Benefit Sharing

10. Profit per ton of carbon dioxide sequestered (US$)
1000
No-tillage
SLM Options
Inorganic fertilizer
Intercropping
100
Alley farming
Manure
Cover crops Soil amendments
Include trees
Afforestation
Crop residues Terracing
10 Tree crop farming
Rotation diversification
Rotation Improved
intensification Rainwater fallow
harvesting Cross slope barriers
0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Carbon dioxide sequestered (ton per hectare per year)
Source: World Bank, 2012

11. Scenarios for Soil Organic Carbon
SLM+SFM+LULUCF for CC-M
“Normal” or sustainable level of SOC
SOC
SLM for food security
BAU GEF Project with GEF Project with
LDFA Resources LD + MFA Resources

12. Looking Ahead
- Emerging Global Priorities
• Food Security – improving and increasing food
crop production in vulnerable regions
• Climate-Smart Agriculture – enhancing
resilience and climate change mitigation in crop
and livestock systems
• Forest Landscape Management and Restoration
– increasing forest and tree cover

13. Conclusions and Implication
• LD financing -> leverage investments in SLM to
manage soils for food security
• Investments contribute multiple benefits and create
opportunities for cross-focal area synergy
• Soil management options -> presents challenges for
managing tradeoffs
• Demonstrating environment benefits requires tools for
monitoring and measuring -> carbon benefits