Harmony in action for land restoration: Linking social protection, financial inclusion and disaster risk finance
Rackelmann, Fabian, van der Heijden, Sophie, Parekhelashvili, Mariam, Panda, Architesh, Pineda Fernandez, Diana M., Bananayo, Phillip Bonera, Sandholz, Simone, Kreft, Soenke, Orr, Barron J. and Walz, Yvonne (2024). Harmony in action for land restoration: Linking social protection, financial inclusion and disaster risk finance. United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).
Document type:
Report
Collection:
-
Attached Files (Some files may be inaccessible until you login with your UNU Collections credentials) Name Description MIMEType Size Downloads P235777-04_UNU_FISPER_WEB.pdf P235777-04_UNU FISPER_WEB.pdf 
application/pdf 7.00MB -
Sub-type Research report Author Rackelmann, Fabian
van der Heijden, Sophie
Parekhelashvili, Mariam
Panda, Architesh
Pineda Fernandez, Diana M.
Bananayo, Phillip Bonera
Sandholz, Simone
Kreft, Soenke
Orr, Barron J.
Walz, YvonneTitle Harmony in action for land restoration: Linking social protection, financial inclusion and disaster risk finance Publication Date 2024 Place of Publication Bonn Publisher United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) Pages 86 Language eng Abstract The prevalence of land degradation is evident at a global scale. Between 20 and 40 per cent of the world’s land surface is degraded or is undergoing degradation. This is primarily driven by the expansion of agriculture, mining and urban sprawl. The results are wetland drainage, soil erosion and loss of biodiversity. These, in turn, are aggravated by more intense and frequent weather extremes triggered by climate change. The deterioration of land and natural resources has serious impacts on livelihoods, food security and the overall resilience of people, communities and societies at large. Land restoration is widely recognized as an effective approach to addressing these challenges, meeting human needs and improving biosphere stewardship. Land restoration not only aims to avoid, reduce and reverse land degradation, but it also supports more productive landscapes, addresses climate change and reduces biodiversity loss. Furthermore, it opens the opportunity for fostering sustainable livelihoods, decent work and human well-being. To date, however, land restoration activities have also presented problems. Many of these activities, for example, focus on improving biodiversity or on sequestering carbon without due considerations for the well-being of those affected. This is despite the need for these activities to deliver co-benefits, such as income opportunities or improved agricultural yields, to incentivize and facilitate local acceptance and participation and to make the activities effective. Integrating the policy objectives of social protection and financial inclusion, along with disaster risk finance instruments, within land restoration efforts can help ensure these co-benefits. Carefully incorporating them into land restoration activities can make land restoration outcomes more equitable, especially where trade-offs between different land-use aims result in negative effects for certain stakeholders. To support the design of inclusive policies, this guide presents three pathways to enhance coherence among land restoration, social protection, financial inclusion, and disaster risk finance objectives. The first pathway focuses on designing or adapting standalone policy instruments to deliver co-benefits. For instance, training in sustainable agricultural practices can enhance both ecological outcomes and economic opportunities, particularly for disadvantaged groups. The second pathway involves combining multiple policy instruments into integrated programmes that address diverse objectives more comprehensively. For example, linking low-interest loans with land restoration training can simultaneously promote financial inclusion and restoration objectives. The third pathway emphasizes the coordination and alignment of multiple existing policies and programmes across sectors. This approach can address systemic challenges by fostering transformative changes in socio-economic systems and value chains. The guide also highlights the importance of reviewing enabling environments for policy development and implementation. Policymakers must assess existing capacities, funding, and stakeholder engagement mechanisms to select and support the most suitable pathways. Additionally, safeguards must be integrated into policy design to ensure equity in land restoration outcomes. Emphasizing the involvement of disadvantaged groups—including women, youth, and indigenous communities—not only promotes fairness but also enhances the long-term effectiveness of restoration efforts by leveraging diverse knowledge and experiences. Copyright Holder United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification Copyright Year 2024 Copyright type All rights reserved ISBN 9789295128149 -
Citation counts 
Search Google Scholar
Access Statistics: 44 Abstract Views, 12 File Downloads - Detailed Statistics Created: Thu, 19 Dec 2024, 17:04:53 JST by Aarti Basnyat on behalf of UNU EHS