Forests and trees in the world's drylands sustain the livelihoods, food security and cultural identity of more than two billion people, yet they remain insufficiently recognized in global climate, biodiversity and land agendas, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
FAO's Call to Action on Dryland Forests was launched today during a High-level dialogue on Dryland forests for food, nutrition and resilience held as part of the 10th World Forest Week, running alongside the 28th Session of the FAO Committee on Forestry (COFO) at FAO headquarters in Rome.
The call urges governments, donors and partners to strengthen the sustainable management, restoration and governance of drylands forests; better integrate them into national climate, biodiversity and land priorities; and significantly increase investment in their conservation and sustainable use. It also proposes a new Dryland Forest Support Accelerator as an enabling platform to speed up implementation, mobilize finance, and strengthen country-driven action at scale.
"Dryland forests are central to our lives, and that of future generations," said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu in a video message. "Yet dryland forests are often underrecognized, under-monitored and under-financed. This must change."
Drylands under pressure
Drylands - which are characterized by water scarcity - host forests, woodlands and trees outside forests and cover roughly 41 percent of the Earth's land surface. They also account for 27 percent of global forest area.
Drylands produce high-demand wood and non-wood products, buffer people against drought, and provide one of the most accessible safety nets for the world's poorest households - from fuelwood and fodder to wild foods and medicinal plants. They also underpin the resilience of agrifood systems by supporting livestock, protecting soils and water resources, and providing food and income when crops fail.
But around 25 percent of dryland forest ecosystems are already degraded, driven largely by land-use change including agricultural expansion, urbanization and unsustainable resource extraction. Climate change is compounding these pressures, with longer droughts intensifying water stress and increasing fire risk. These impacts fall heavily on smallholders, Indigenous Peoples, pastoralists and local communities, as well as women and youth.
Dryland Forest Support Accelerator
The Call to Action emphasizes that proven solutions for reviving drylands already exist, and the priority is to create the conditions to implement them at scale.
At the centre of the call is the Dryland Forest Support Accelerator - an FAO-anchored, country-driven platform to help move action beyond fragmented projects. It would support countries in integrating dryland forests into national planning processes - including nationally determined contributions and land degradation neutrality targets - accessing long-term finance, strengthening monitoring, and improving coordination across sectors.
Building on FAO's experience on drylands, notably through the GEF-7 Dryland Sustainable Landscapes Impact Program and the COFO Working Group on Dryland Forests and Agrosilvopastoral Systems, the Accelerator would organize support around three objectives: gathering evidence and identifying country needs; supporting the implementation and scaling of proven approaches; and capturing results and lessons to inform future action.
The Call to Action further advises that governments, donors and the Rio Conventions give greater political and financial priority to dryland forests across global environmental processes, including through formal recognition of dryland forests as a priority ecosystem under the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).
