President Arif Alvi calls for global efforts to save world from drought

Islamabad: The World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought is being observed today, to raise awareness about the methods of preventing desertification and recovering from drought.

This year’s slogan of the Day is “Rising Up from Drought Together”.

In a message on the occasion, President Dr Arif Alvi emphasized the need to join hands with regional countries, in particular, and rest of the world in general, to save the world from droughts and ensure food security.

He said the impact of drought can be mitigated by developing water sources, such as micro dams, ponds and wells, water rationing and restoring pastures.

The President said Pakistan is working in many areas to mitigate the impact of drought, including the implementation of a national-level programme to plant 3.29 billion plants over an area of one million hectares in desertification and drought-prone areas.

Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman, in her message on the World Desertification and Drought Day, stressed the need to set in motion the work on improving drought preparedness and building drought resilience.

She said we cannot stop droughts from happening but we can prepare for them by conserving our water.

The Minister said Pakistan is striving to achieve the voluntary Land Degradation Neutrality Targets by 2030.