The Innovation Commission during the Science Summit at the UNGA79

The Innovation Commission for Climate Change, Food Security, and Agriculture, chaired by Nobel Laureate Professor Michael Kremer, in partnership with the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the Arab Gulf Programme for Development (AGFUND), and the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) co-hosted on September 24th a one-day milestone event during the Science Summit in New York City at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA79) to promote a five-year flagship initiative to position for scale innovations to address the causes and consequences of desertification and land degradation in African countries. 

Following a two-day workshop in Riyadh in early June, this milestone event leads to the UNCCD COP16 taking place in Riyadh December 2-13, 2024. In addition to a high-level morning session featuring a keynote by Professor Kremer, the leadership of UNCCD, AGFUND, and BADEA, as well as various ministers, parallel sessions took place in the afternoon co-organized by key partners, including the J-PAL at MIT and AVPN. The sessions focused on evidence-based, cost-effective innovations, including digital agriculture, financial innovations to facilitate resilience and mitigation, village input fairs, and rainwater harvesting in the Sahel. Two policy dialogues also stressed the growing relevance of harnessing the private sector to promote alternative financing and innovation at the intersection of food security and climate change in Africa. The last session highlighted the roadmap for Riyadh and the UNCCD COP-16. As a result, the flagship initiative gained traction, recognition, and support.

Click here to read the event summary.