Question: Which of the following country is hosting the Conference of Parties (COP-14) of the UNCCD in September, 2019?
(a) USA
(b) India
(c) Australia
(d) Japan
Answer: (b)
Related facts:
- India for the first time will host the 14th session of the Conference of Parties (COP-14) of the UNCCD (United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification).
- It will be held between 2nd September to 13th September, 2019 at the India Expo Center and Mart, New Delhi.
- The conference will be hosted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change of India. From 197 countries nearly 5,000 delegates will be participating in the event.
- The purpose of the event is to address the issues of land degradation and desertification.
- One of the primary functions of the COP is to review reports submitted by the Country Parties, detailing how they are carrying out their commitments. India will take over the COP presidency from China during COP-14 for two years until the next COP in 2021
- Ahead of the COP-14, Environment Minister Mr. Prakash Javadekar launched a flagship project to enhance India’s capacity for forest landscape restoration as a part of a larger international initiative called the Bonn Challenge.
- India had joined voluntarily with the Bonn Challenge pledge at COP-13 (2015) in Paris.
- Bonn Challenge is a global effort to bring 150 million hectares of the world’s degraded and deforested land under restoration by the year 2020 and 350 million hectares by 2030.
- In 1994, the United Nations General Assembly declared 17th June the “World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought” to promote public awareness and the implementation of the UNCCD in the desertification affected countries.
- It had committed to restore 13 million hectares (MH) of degraded and deforested land by 2020, and an additional 8 million hectares (MH) by 2030. It is one of the largest pledges in Asia.
- UNCCD was established in 1994, and is the only legally binding international agreement linking environment and development issues to the land agenda.
- Apart from UNCCD, the United Nations has two other important major Conventions: the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
Links:
http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=190496
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/india-to-host-un-meet-on-land-degradation-in-september/article28022138.ece
https://www.unccd.int/conventionconference-parties-cop/unccd-cop14-new-delhi-india