Regional Centre in Bangkok

LDC-SIDS Global Portfolio Project

Land Degradation in LDC and SIDS

The Least Developed Countries (LDCs) are generally characterized by high levels of chronic poverty, largely rural-based populations and heavy dependence on traditional agriculture.  Exacerbated by the prevalence of land degradation, LDCs face significant structural constraints for economic growth, human development and environmental sustainability.  At the same time, the Small Island Developing States (SIDS),  with unique characteristics, also face their own set of challenges, given the small size of the countries (in terms of both physical area and economy), limited infrastructure, distance from large international markets, high vulnerability to natural disasters and low level of human resource development.   Small size, coupled with the land tenure systems, soil types, relief and climatic variation, limits the area available for urban settlement, agriculture, mining, commercial forestry, tourism and other infrastructure, and creates intense competition between the often limited land use options.

Both LDCs and SIDS usually have limited capacity at the individual, institutional and systemic levels for SLM.  With their often large and rapidly expanding populations, land degradation poses a risk of increasing poverty, food shortage, climate vulnerability and negative environmental impacts.  Despite the need for SLM mainstreaming in order to secure sustainable development, agricultural and rural development continues to be sectorally based, restricting the ability to identify, and to implement innovative and inter-sectoral strategies.  Thereby, land degradation issues are often not mainstreamed into national and local development policies and planning cycles.  As a result, government budgetary allocations in SLM areas are weak, and policy recommendations relating to economic growth often conflict with the goal of managing land in a sustainable manner.  Furthermore, many of these countries are in post-crisis situations, requiring additional technical and financial support.   Therefore, without effectively removing these barriers, land degradation can cause pervasive and insidious impacts that will severely compromise the livelihoods of people and communities and development prospects of many LDCs and SIDS. 

The last, but not the least, there are strong linkages between land degradation and climate change.  The need for climate change adaptation in the agriculture and rural development sectors in LDCs and SIDS is more than evident, and at the same time, there are an increasing number of opportunities for LDCs and SIDS to undertake GHG emissions mitigation measures through SLM based on which unique and innovative financing options for SLM and livelihood improvement may become available (e.g., REDD, CDM, terrestrial carbon).

On the basis of this, the project supports participating LDCs and SIDS in developing long-term, integrated and participatory strategies that enable them to effectively address SLM and rural development priorities through cross-scrotal development and planning processes.