The Economics of Land Degradation Neutrality in Asia: Empirical Analysis & Policy Implications for the SDGs
Pushpam KUMAR
UNEP, kenya
The global community has acknowledged the risks that degradation poses to stability,
food security and livelihoods by setting Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 15, “Life on Land”. By 2030, this goal aims to protect, restore and promote the sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems. Target 15.3
specifically states that “By 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral (LDN)
world.” The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification defines LDN as “a state whereby the amount and quality of land resources necessary to support ecosystem functions and services and enhance food security remain stable or increase within specified temporal and spatial scales and ecosystems.”
Progress on the goal is to be measured in terms of “proportion of land that is degraded over total land area”
as an indicator, and sub-indicators (land cover and land cover change, land productivity, and above and below ground carbon stocks). These indicators are purely biophysical and empirical studies integrating
these biophysical indicators with socioeconomic factors using biophysical and econometric modelling approaches is crucial to provide a framework in which the costs and benefits of interventions against land
degradation could be assessed at different spatial and temporal scales. Results from these type of studies are essential tools for policy makers, practitioners, and other stakeholders as it allows informed decisions to be made towards sustainable land management. Moreover, such studies would also highlight policy implications and the interdependent nature of achieving a specific SDG target with other SDGs and targets.
Event: Land Governance in an Interconnected World_Annual World Bank Conference on Land and Poverty_2018
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