WE ARE GENERATION RESTORATION

Every year on the 5th of June, the world celebrates World Environment Day.

This day serves as a global platform for raising awareness and promoting action on critical environmental issues. Established by the United Nations in 1972, this day has grown to become one of the most significant environmental events worldwide and even locally in Eswatini, engaging with governments, businesses and citizens in addressing pressing ecological challenges. In 2024, the theme is ‘Land Restoration, Desertification and Drought Resilience,’ focusing on the urgent need to rehabilitate degraded lands, combat desertification and build resilience to drought. This theme is particularly significant for Africa, a continent where land degradation and desertification pose severe threats to livelihoods, food security and sustainable development.

Land restoration involves reversing the degradation of ecosystems to regain their functionality and productivity. Desertification is a process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically due to drought, deforestation or inappropriate agriculture practices. Drought resilience refers to the ability to prepare for, adapt to and recover from drought conditions. By addressing these interconnected challenges, the 2024 theme underscores the necessity of comprehensive strategies to restore and sustain land health, ensuring a better and healthy future for all.Africa, with its rich biodiversity and diverse ecosystems, is both highly vulnerable to environmental degradation and exceptionally positioned to benefit from restoration efforts.

Currently, the continent is experiencing significant land degradation, affecting over 40 per cent of its land area. The Sahara Desert is expanding southwards, while the Sahel region, a semi-arid zone below the Sahara, faces severe desertification and drought. These environmental challenges exacerbate poverty, food insecurity and displacement as communities struggle to survive on increasingly unproductive land. For Eswatini, some of the factors that drive land degradation include; industrial activities that increase waste pollution into the soil, increased population pressure and uncontrolled invasive species.

Why is it important?
Celebrating World Environment Day under this theme brings several benefits to Africa. Firstly, it raises awareness about the critical importance of land restoration. Public understanding of these issues is often limited, yet they have profound impacts on everyday life. By spotlighting land restoration, the day encourages communities, governments and international organisations to prioritise sustainable land management practices. Secondly, the theme promotes the sharing of knowledge and best practices. Many African countries have already implemented successful land restoration projects. For example, Ethiopia’s Tigray region has seen remarkable improvements in soil fertility and water retention through community-led initiatives such as terracing and reforestation.

In Eswatini we also have youth such as Luyanda Nobuhle Nxumalo who is a graduate of the University of Eswatini and a grant beneficiary under the Eswatini Environment Fund led the Nkambeni Donga Rehabilitation Project. Her projects main objectives where to reclaim lost land due to erosion and degradation by reintroducing indigenous flora and fauna such as fruit trees that do well in semi-arid landscapes such as mangoes and banana. Sharing such success stories can inspire and inform similar efforts across the country, fostering a collaborative approach to tackling land degradation.

Thirdly, World Environment Day can further encourage political will and funding for land restoration projects to youth projects. Governments and policymakers are more likely to invest in and support initiatives when there is heightened public and international attention. Increased funding and resources can enable large-scale youth led projects that might otherwise be unfeasible, such as the Penpont Project organised by Action for Conservation. The Penpont Project is the world’s first large-scale, youth-led nature recovery project.

It serves as a blueprint for how youth action and conservation can bring positive change. Moreover, the focus on drought resilience is particularly important for Southern Africa, where climate change is intensifying drought frequency and severity. In February of 2024, Zambia officially declared a national emergency due to a prolonged drought that was experienced in some parts of the SADC region. Building resilience to droughts involves not only improving water management and agricultural practices but also strengthening community capacities to cope with and recover from drought. Celebrating this theme encourages the adoption of innovative solutions, such as drought-resistant crops, efficient irrigation systems, and early warning systems, which can mitigate the impacts of drought and safeguard livelihoods.

In addition to these practical benefits, the theme fosters a sense of global solidarity. Environmental degradation is a shared challenge that transcends borders. By uniting under a common cause, World Environment Day 2024 emphasises that collective action is essential for effective land restoration and drought resilience. This solidarity can lead to stronger international cooperation, where countries share resources, technology and expertise to combat desertification and restore degraded lands.

In conclusion, World Environment Day 2024’s theme of ‘Land Restoration, Desertification and Drought Resilience’ is of paramount importance, especially for the African continent. It provides an opportunity to highlight the urgent need for sustainable land management, share successful practices, mobilise political and financial support and promote innovative solutions for drought resilience. By celebrating this theme, we can contribute to a more sustainable and resilient future for Eswatini and the world, for we are the generation that will bring about restoration to our lands!

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