Kenya to Lead Climate-Resilient Agriculture Initiative in the Commonwealth

Dubai – Kenya has committed to leading the Commonwealth Living Lands Action Group, focusing on climate-resilient agriculture for food security across the 56 Commonwealth member countries. This announcement was made during a Commonwealth event on December 3, 2023, at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai.

According to Kenya News Agency, the event marked the launch of a new implementation framework aimed at coordinating action among the 56 Commonwealth countries on land, biodiversity, and climate challenges. This initiative, impacting a quarter of the world’s land area, follows extensive consultations since the adoption of the Living Lands Charter last year. Key speakers, including Prime Minister Robert Abela of Malta and Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), supported the framework during the event.

Prime Minister Abela emphasized the urgency of addressing climate change, biodiversity protection, and ecological restoration. “We are here to renew our commitment to work together towards the same through the Living Lands Charter,” he stated. The Rt Patricia Scotland KC, Commonwealth Secretary-General, highlighted the significant impact of climate change across Commonwealth countries, noting increasing food insecurity and soil depletion. “With this implementation framework, we are taking a giant leap forward,” she said, outlining the framework’s focus on thematic action working groups.

The framework adopts a system-wide approach to implementing the Living Lands Charter through five thematic action areas: climate-resilient agriculture for food security; soil and water conservation; sustainable green cover and biodiversity; carbon-neutral and climate-resilient livestock rearing and animal husbandry; and indigenous and local people for climate-resilient development. Countries including Guyana and Malta have stepped forward to lead actions in specific areas, with Kenya championing climate-resilient agriculture for food security.

The Commonwealth will provide extensive support to countries within each thematic area, including mobilizing resources, conducting policy analyses, facilitating governance, offering capacity-building assistance, and generating knowledge for member countries. This framework was developed in response to a mandate from the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in June 2022.

The Secretariat for the three Rio Conventions expressed confidence in the framework’s ability to help countries achieve targets set in the Paris Agreement, the Global Biodiversity Framework, and the UNCCD Strategic Plan for Land Degradation Neutrality. The launch of the framework coincides with the Emirates Declaration on Sustainable Agriculture, Resilient Food Systems, and Climate Action.