Workshop on Alignment & implementation of National Action programmes with the UNCCD 10-year Strategy in the Arab Region League of Arab States (18- 20 June 2014), Dubai - UAE Syria, Mr. Imad ALMAREE

1. Presented By: Eng. Imad Almaree
Deputy Director of Biodiversity, Land, and Natural Reserves.
National Focal Point of UNCCD in Syria Arab Republic
Workshop on Alignment & Implementation of National Action Plans with UNCCD
10-Year Strategy in the Arab Region, 18-20 June 2014, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

2. INTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTION
- Syrian Arab Republic lies on the eastern coast of
the Mediterranean Sea
- It is bordered by Turkey from the north,
Iraq from the east, Jordan from the south,
and the Mediterranean Sea and Lebanon
and Palestine from the west.
- Independence: 1946
- The Capital: Damascus, the oldest Capital City in
the world since more than 5000 years ago .

4. - In 2011, the population of Syria was nearly 24.3
million
- Rural population percentage is about 49.8 % of
total population
- Population working in agriculture percentage is
about 30.4 % of total population
- Over 67 % of the Syrian population lives in
major cities such as Damascus, Aleppo, Homes,
Hama and coastal-zone cities

5. - Area – 185179.71 Km2
- 55% of area receives >200mm/yr rain
- Arable lands form 33 % , rangelands 44 % ,
non arable lands 20 % and forests form 3 % of
total area

6. 

7. The agricultural settlement zones (map1):

9. Syria has signed and ratified the three UN Conventions
on Combating Desertification, Conserving Biological
Diversity, and Climate Change in very early stages, and
committed itself to the success of the global
environmental management system. Since then, many
stakeholders and thousands of Syrians were engaged in
hands-on initiatives, policy-dialogues, and enabling
activities to meet their obligations and ethical
commitments to the Conventions. Remarkable successes
have been achieved in many cases. However, some results
were below expectations.

10. In support of the hard and continuous efforts to stop the
degradation of lands and to put an end for the phenomena
of desertification and to avoid their negative effects and
depending on the principle of participation and
cooperation with the international society, Syria certified
the International Convention to Combat Desertification
in 1997 and it works to execute its obligation for that.

11. Due to the increasing pressures on the natural resources in
the past few decades among of which is the soil, the
phenomena of desertification and the lands deterioration
appeared in different forms such as:
The wind erosion in AL-Badia and water erosion in the areas
of high averages as a result of the collapse of the plant
cover and salinity of lands as a result of the use of the
traditional irrigation methods

12. The arid land area (Syrian AL-Badia):
This area includes the south-easterly part of Syria,
extends east ward to the Iraqi borders, and south ward to
Jordan. It is a hill with high about (500-1000) meter.
With a continental climate dry and warm in summer,
relatively hot in winter days, and very cold in winter
nights, hot and dry in transitional seasons.

13. Syrian Arab Republic is located in the Eastern
Mediterranean zone, whose area is 185179.71 Km2
.
Arid and semi-arid lands respectively constitute 71 and 23
% of the country area (185,180 km2). The rangeland is 44
%, 33 % is suitable for agriculture, 3 % is forest, and 20 %
consist of Nonarable land.
The territories in which the rain average is less than 200
mm/year compose about 55% of its area. This makes its
soil fragile possible to be exposed to quick collapse.

14. Distribution of Soils orders and great groups in Syria

15. - State of Desertification and Land Degradation in Syria:

17. ‫النجراف‬ ‫تدهور‬ ‫ودرجات‬ ‫مساحات‬ ‫يبين‬ ‫التالي‬ ‫والجدول‬
‫الوسطى‬ ‫البادية‬ ‫في‬ ‫الريحي‬ :
.(ACSAD, 2004)
Wind erosion & Dust Storms

18. ‫النجراف‬ ‫تدهور‬ ‫ودرجات‬ ‫مساحات‬ ‫يبين‬ ‫التالي‬ ‫والجدول‬
‫الوسطى‬ ‫البادية‬ ‫في‬ ‫الريحي‬ :
.(ACSAD, 2004)
Degradation
Type
Light
Degradation
Medium
Degradation
Intensive
Degradation
Very Intensive
Degradation
Total
Area % 2 5.2 38.9 6.8 53
Area
hectares
56629.5 148395 552769 96628 1421894
.(ACSAD, 2004)

19. Dust Storm in Damascus 26 Sep 2010

20. Dust Storm 26 Sep 2010

21. ‫الزور‬ ‫دير‬ ‫مدينة‬ ‫في‬ ‫غبارية‬ ‫عاصفة‬12‫نيسان‬2011

22. Actions taken
to combat
desertification
and land
degradation in
Syria
‫الجراءات‬
‫المتخذة‬
‫التصحر‬ ‫لمكافحة‬
‫الراضي‬ ‫وتدهور‬
‫سورية‬ ‫في‬

23. The National Action Plan
to Combat Desertification
(NAP) in Syria

24. The NAP Priority Programme
Programme 1. Extension of the Badia Integrated
Development Programme
Programme 2. Water Erosion Control in Coastal Areas
Programme 3. Sustainable Land Management Practices in
River Basins

25. - The National Plans and Strategies:

26. Projects implemented and being
implemented to combat desertification and
land degradation in Syria:

27. Several ministries and institutions work
directly or indirectly in combat desertification
and draught mitigation

28. The current status of the process of alignment
of the National Plan to Combat Desertification
in Syria (for reasons not to start)

29. The reality of the NAP situation in Syria

30. Reasons
we have chosen using the GEF Agency modality (option
2) to get GEF financing for Enabling Activities under the
UNCCD
Response: ?????
the Secretariat can offer only limited support