Evaluation of the project "Action Against Desertification in support of the implementation of the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and the Sahel Initiative, the United Nations to Combat Desertification and Drought action plans in Fiji and Haiti, and South–

Book excerpt: The “Action Against Desertification in support of the implementation of the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and the Sahel Initiative, the UNCCD action plans in Fiji and Haiti, and South–South Cooperation in the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States” project (AAD) worked with eight countries in Africa, the Caribbean and Asia to tackle the detrimental social, economic and environmental impacts of land degradation and desertification (2014 to 2020). It was implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and partners, with majority of funding from the European Union and co-funding from diverse partners. The project contributed to improving the conditions and productivity of agrosilvipastoral landscapes and the capacity to plan land restoration and manage forest and land resources. Livelihood improvements and concrete positive incidence on household income, food security, crops and milk production, and community interactions. It increased awareness and support policy makers developing intervention strategies that address D/LDD. The large-scale, heavy machinery-based technical intervention logic was found appropriate to address desertification/land degradation and drought (D/LDD) in specific conditions and countries. The geospatial study estimated the contribution of Action Against Desertification (AAD) to carbon sequestration to be between 384 000 and 1.27 million tonnes of carbon sequestered. The evaluation recommendations include further investments in training; building awareness and addressing climate change and land degradation; increasing political and policy coherence; guaranteeing sustainability and buy-in from beneficiaries; building in sustainable financing mechanisms at all stakeholder levels; increasing opportunities; and developing non-timber forest product (NTFP) value chains to create and develop viable markets for the products.