Presented at UNCCD COP12, Ankara, Turkey by the Land Degradation Focal Area Team Global Environment Facility GEF-6 Programming Update & UNCCD Enabling Activity Support

GEF as a Financial Mechanism of the UNCCD  GEF provides financing to eligible affected country Parties for activities that support implementation of the Convention  GEF-6 Replenishment: $431 million for LDFA  144 eligible Countries included in the STAR ($346 million)  Set-aside funds Programs & Enabling Activities ($85 million)  GEF investment focuses on Sustainable Land Management (SLM) in production systems – agriculture, rangelands, and forest landscapes  Other SLM related funding windows such as the SFM program and three adaptation funds managed by the GEF (LDCF, SCCF, AF) available

Biodiversity Land Degradation Climate Change Chemicals International Waters Sustainable Forest Management Sustainable Cities Food Security Forests Focal / Multi-focal Area Strategy Delivery Selected SD Themes Integrated Approach Pilots  Commodities  Partnership for SS-Africa  Cities

Land Degradation Focal Area Mandate – Finance efforts to arrest and reverse land degradation (desertification and deforestation) Direct support to implementation of the UNCCD Focus – Sustainable Land Management (SLM) in production landscapes (120 million ha are targeted for SLM coverage globally) Impacts: Flow of ecosystem services increased or maintained Sustained crop, livestock, and forest production Sustainable livelihoods (development benefit)

Context for GEF-6 Strategy 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

LDFA focus: Sustainable Land Management Living sand barrier Contour Terraces Forest Landscape Restoration Pastoral and Rangeland Management Agroforestry Grazing Management IEM approaches

Land Degradation Focal Area GEF-6 Strategy Goal: To arrest or reverse land degradation including desertification and deforestation

Land Degradation Strategy: Objectives and Programs LD-1: Agriculture and Rangeland Systems Agro-ecological Intensification SLM for Climate-Smart Agriculture LD-2: Forest Landscapes Landscape Management and Restoration LD-3: Integrated Landscapes Scaling up SLM LD-4: Institutional and Policy Frameworks Mainstreaming SLM in Development

Land Degradation Indicative Allocations 1.STAR: $346 million allocated to 144 eligible countries to support the 5 programs under the LD strategy 2.Set Asides: $85 million with following breakdown: - Integrated approach on Food Security: $40 million - SFM program incentive: $20 million - UNCCD Enabling Activities: $15 million - Regional and Global projects: $10 million

Investments in SLM produce multiple benefits both in agricultural production and environmental quality In GEF-5: SLM interventions were mostly pilot interventions that have demonstrated success at limited scale. In GEF-6: two-pronged approach for enhanced impact at landscape level: (a)Upscaling SLM through field investments, and (b)Enabling framework improvements for mainstreaming SLM into conventional agriculture

Cross-focal Area Linkages Deliver multiple environmental and social benefits, seeking synergy: SFM/REDD+: Multiple benefits from management of all types of forests BIODIVERSITY: Protected area management, sustainable use, and mainstreaming in production systems INTERNATIONAL WATERS: Integrated water resource management in transboundary landscapes CC MITIGATION: LULUCF component for reducing GHG emissions and protection of carbon stocks CC ADAPTATION (LDCF/SCCF): Resilience in production systems and practices; reduced vulnerability

How The SFM Incentive Mechanism Works Investments from 2+ FAs seeking multiple benefits from managing forests sustainably Incentive funds released in ratio of 2:1 of FA investment STAR Resources BD CC LD e.g.BD $2,000,000 LD $1,000,000 +SFM $1,500,000 Total Project $4,500,000 GEF-6 SFM Incentive

GEF Funding for Enabling ActivitiesGEF6 GEF2GEF3GEF4GEF5 1 st Generation of GEF Enabling Activities 2 nd Generation of GEF Enabling Activities 1. NCSAs 2. LDC-SIDS COP Guidance -NAP Alignment -Reporting -???

Accessing GEF funds for Enabling Activities - Modalities GEF EAs GEF Agency facilitated GEF Agency Direct Access by countries Countries must comply with World Bank procedures Support to national country- driven proposals UNEP Umbrella Projects – BD, CC and LD

Figures for UNCCD Enabling Activities Financing – GEF- 5 (2014 – 2018) 133 of 143 eligible countries submitted requests: – Direct Access – 11 countries – GEF Agency (FAO, UNDP, UNEP) – 34 countries – Umbrella Project (UNEP) - 88 countries Total LDFA resources requested: US$11.8 million – 70% for NAP alignment; 30% for Reporting and Review Global Support Programme: “Increasing the Quantity and Improving the Quality of Information for the Review of Implementation of the UNCCD Implementation” was supported with an additional amount of $2.2 million

GEF Support to UNCCD Enabling Activities in GEF-6 GEF-6 - second time GEF is supporting Enabling Activities under the UNCDD, with explicit COP guidance COP Guidance: Awaiting COP guidance Total budget as per Council approved GEF-6 replenishment document: $15 million

Conclusion: Land Degradation Focal Area in GEF-6 More focused to influence transformational change at scale Stronger link to global development aspirations – agriculture and food security Effective cross-focal area linkages – Biodiversity, Climate Change, SFM, and International Waters More resources, more effectively targeted

Contact: Ulrich Apel Land Degradation Focal Area Coordinator, GEF Secretariat