Transcript Mr. Sandagdorj Erdenebileg, Chief, UN

Building the Resilience of Landlocked
Developing Countries to the Impacts of
Climate Change, Desertification, Land
Degradation and Drought
Sandagdorj Erdenebileg
UN-OHRLLS
Tel: 212 963 7703,
email: [email protected]
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Why LLDCs deserve special attention?
• Because of the constraints associated with
their geography
– Lack of direct access to the sea and long
distance
– Remoteness from major international
markets
– Inadequate transit infrastructure
– Delays in transit – due to
checkpoints/unscheduled roadblocks,
cumbersome customs and border crossing
procedures and insufficient application of
ICT, excessive number of documentation
– Inefficient logistics systems
Why LLDCs deserve special attention?
RESULT IN: High transport and trade
transaction costs – which
• Reduce competitiveness and diminish export
profits – decreased economic growth
• Inflate the prices of imported inputs for
manufacturing
• Discourage investment
• Limited technology transfer
DEVELOPMENT IMPACT
• Reduced sustainable economic growth and
difficulties to achieve the MDGs
• LLDCs among the world’s poorest countries 15 are LDCs
• 19 LLDCs GDP per capita is below $1,000.
• LLDCs economies not well developed
– Heavy reliance on low-value – high-bulk primary
commodities which make them vulnerable to
commodity price volatility
– Limited productive capacities
– High vulnerability to the external and internal
shocks and including the impacts of climate
change and desertification and land degradation
• The level of development in the LLDCs is on
average 20% lower than what it would be were
the countries non-landlocked.
Human Development Index (HDI) has
improved but lower than other groups
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Poverty headcount ratio at 1.25 dollars per day
(% of total pop) has decreased but still high
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LLDCs are still heavily dependent on commodities
African LLDCs: Minerals (diamonds, gold, copper,
uranium) and agriculture (cotton, coffee, tobacco, bovine)
Export concentration of LLDCs has been increasing
0.45
0.40
0.35
0.30
0.25
0.20
0.15
0.10
0.05
0.00
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
Developing economies
2005
2006
2007
2008
Developed economies
2009
2010
LLDCs
2011
- Declining Value addition in Agriculture from
23% in 2001 to 18% in 2011.
- in manufacturing 18 (1990) 11% (2011)
Manufacturing Value Addition (Share of GDP)
20
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
LLDC
LDCs
TRANSIT COUNTRIES
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
0
1990
Percentage of GDP
18
Dryland regions of the world (yellow)
These are sensitive to desertification
Vulnerable to desertification
• 72% of global drylands are in developing
countries. 60% are in LLDCs
• Of the 29 countries in the world with more
than 20% of the population living on
degraded land, 14 are LLDCs.
• LLDCs have highest proportion of
population living on degraded land >70%.
• The rate of deforestation is also alarmingly
high.
• 70% of 400 million people living in LLDCs
are rural based and heavily rely on the
land resources, livestock production,
fisheries, forests for food production,
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exports, employment and energy.
Areas affected by desertification and
land degradation
Impact of climate change, desertification
and land degradation on LLDCs
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Impact
• Decreased productivity
• Food insecurity/famines, Poverty/human loss
• Reliance on climate-sensitive commodities for
export, has exposed LLDCs to the double
threat of economic and environmental shocks
• Water scarcity or floods
• Reduced hydro energy and water availability
• Conflicts, Migration
• Increased prevalence and severity of disease
• Loss of bio-diversity
• Negative impact on transport infrastructure
• The frequency and intensity of extreme weather
events in LLDCs esp. droughts, and extreme
temperature have been increasing, between the
period 2000–2010 and 1970–1979.
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Country Examples of the impacts
In Ethiopia, GDP loss from reduced agricultural
productivity due to land degradation is estimated
at $130 million per year.
In Lesotho, arable land is quickly diminishing and is
predicted to shrink to 3% by 2030.
Due to the 1991 drought, Zimbabwe’s economy
shrank by 5-7%, while in Zambia and Malawi
economic growth declined by 4-6 and 8-9 percent
respectively.
Armenia loses an average of USD 33 million each year
as a result of damages by extreme climate events
41 percent of Mongolia is already severely affected by
desertification.
Floods and droughts in Bolivia with the 1997/98 El
Nino caused a total loss of USD530 million,
approximately 2.2 percent of Bolivia’s GDP.
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Interventions – NATIONAL LEVEL
• National action programmes (NAPs) - to combat
desertification in specific ecosystems
• National Action Programmes on Adaptation – for
climate change
• National environmental plans
• Some countries have increased budget
allocations or established specific funds eg.
national climate funds
• Various Programmes have been implemented –
• Sustainable land and water resources
management, mitigation, adaptation,
conservation, reclamation of degraded areas,
protection of ecosystems and biodiversity
• Capacity building – institutional and human
development
• Early warning and disaster management
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Interventions – SUB-REGIONAL LEVEL
Sub-regional and Regional Action
Programmes
Financing mechanisms/support available at
regional/subregional level – eg. African
Development Bank and Asian Development
Bank
 Africa water facility
Energy and Environment Partnership
program
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Interventions – INTERNATIONAL LEVEL
 UNCCD has also put in place a 10-year strategic
plan and framework to enhance the
implementation of the Convention (2008–2018)
 Financing mechanisms
 The Global Environment Facility
 Climate Investment Funds
 Green Climate fund
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Challenges
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Lack of adaptive capacity – economically
disadvantaged, undiversified agro-based
economies, and equitable access to resources
Lack of capacity in global negotiations, Climate
Change, Desertification, Sustainable development
Inadequate financial resources to fully implement
designed plans.
Poor data and monitoring mechanisms – affects
development of robust national action plans and
their implementation.
Lack of robust information dissemination systems,
Limited technology development and transfer
Increasing austerity measures.
New development agenda must adequately respond
to the needs of LLDCs.
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Priority Actions and Support Measures to LLDCs
• Promote holistic and integrated approach to
address climate change, desertification and
drought – work on a synergy of the conventions
• Invest in climate-smart agriculture to counter the
impact of climate change, desertification and
land degradation, involve local communities
• Strive to diversify the economic base of LLDCs
• Promote effective and comprehensive approach
to risk reduction and sustainable development
• Promote regional integration to address climate
change, desertification and drought – foster
development of regional technology centers, and
regional networks of excellence;
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Priority Actions and Support Measures to LLDCs
• Strengthen early warning systems and information
& institutional capacity on climate and weather
information systems
• Strengthen international support and broad access
to financial facilities
• Consider establishing special financing facility just
for LLDCs
• Provide technological and capacity building
assistance to LLDCs.
• Strengthen and support participation of LLDCs in
relevant intergovernmental and multilateral
processes relating to the environment
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Priority Actions and Support Measures to LLDCs
The Second UN Conference should
address these priorities
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… Thank You
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