Third Taklamakan Desert Forum and Second Technical Workshop for Building Great Green Wall of Africa Open

On June 10, 2023, the third Taklamakan Desert Forum and the Second Technical Workshop for Building Great Green Wall of Africa were held in Korla, a beautiful city known for its pears in Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture of northwest China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. More than 180 representatives from 14 countries, including China, Ethiopia, Mauritania, Nigeria, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia, participated in the forum, representing national scientific research institutions, international organizations, and companies in the field of desertification control.

The forum was jointly organized by the International Cooperation Bureau of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography (XIEG) of CAS, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Regional Association for Science and Technology, Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefectural Association for Science and Technology, the Tarim Oilfield Branch of PetroChina, Xinjiang Geographical Society, the Alliance of International Science Organizations (ANSO) and the Secretariat of the Pan African Agency of the Great Green Wall (PAGGW). The event aims to share China's mature technical models and successful experiences in combating desertification, promote cooperation and exchange between China and other Belt and Road countries in the field of land degradation and desertification control, and make positive contributions to the implementation of the Belt and Road Cooperative Mechanism for desertification control, as well as achieving the UN goal of land degradation neutrality (LDN) by 2030 and a 50% reduction in global degraded land by 2040.

The forum featured keynote reports by renowned scientists, including Deng Mingjiang, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE) and chairman of Xinjiang Association for Science and Technology; Zhang Linxiu, director of the United Nations Environment Programme–International Ecosystem Management Partnership (UNEP–IEMP); and Wang Yongdong, senior engineer of XIEG. They delivered reports on various topics, namely "Low-carbon Green Watershed Construction and Large-scale Ecological Scheduling", "Ecosystem Restoration with Nexus Approaches: Actions, Impacts and Implications" and "Research Foundation and Cooperation Suggestions for China's Support for Building the Great Green Wall in Africa". Experts from both domestic and international backgrounds also gathered at the event to discuss the current status and challenges in desertification control in relevant countries and share the latest technological achievements and experiences in combating desertification.

Academician Deng Mingjiang pointed out that the theme of the event, "Desert Ecology, Great Green Wall", aims to promote cooperation and exchange between China and other Belt and Road countries on land degradation and desertification control, foster the cultural of science and technology for the public good, enhance the capacity of technological advancement to benefit all of humanity, and enable Chinese science and technology to make significant contributions towards the establishment of a community with a shared future for mankind under the Silk Road green development initiative.

Li Guangyi, Deputy Secretary of CPC Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefectural Committee, emphasized in his speech that Bayingolin Prefecture would take the forum and workshop as an opportunity to further its endeavors in local desertification control and contribute to the comprehensive management of Taklamakan Desert.

Other speakers at the opening ceremony included Yan Guangfeng, bureau-level official from the Desertification Control Department of China’s National Forestry and Grassland Administration; Gong Haihua, director of the Asian and African Affairs Division of the International Cooperation Bureau of CAS; Jia Xiaoxia, science and technology project officer at the secretariat of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD); Endrias Geta Beldeda, Vice Minister for Irrigation and Low Lands Development of Ethiopia; and Sanou Marcelin, executive director of the PAGGW Secretariat. In their speeches, they unanimously agreed that addressing key ecological issues related to desertification requires strengthening international cooperation and exchange, sharing mature technological achievements and successful experiences, and working collaboratively to create a sustainable ecological environment.

XIEG director Zhang Yuanming highlighted that since the establishment of XIEG in Xinjiang over 60 years ago, the institute has developed innovative scientific theories and methods in arid land research. In the field of desertification control, XIEG has achieved remarkable technical achievements, creating exemplary research and application models in desertification control and elevated China's desertification control techniques to a world-leading level.

The forum provided a platform for African countries heavily affected by desertification along the Belt and Road routes, enabling them to share, exchange and learn from one another, strengthening collaboration and communication on desertification control between China and African countries, and facilitating scientific and technological cooperation in combating desertification among Belt and Road countries.

The roundtable dialogue on scientific and technological cooperation on desertification control for Belt and Road countries with entrepreneurs also took place in the forum. After the event, from June 12 to 20, participants will also have the opportunity to visit Taklamakan Desert Research Station, Tarim Desert Highway Shelter Belt Ecological Project, Cele National Field Scientific Observation and Research Station for desert-steppe ecosystems, etc., to get a comprehensive understanding of XIEG’s desertification control efforts.

Contact: LIU Jie, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography

E-mail: liujie@ms.xjb.ac.cn