LocationsHow Pakistan is fighting back against desertification
Growing Back Greener
June 24, 2025
Land degradation and drought threaten lives and livelihoods around the world — and Pakistan is no exception.
As a signatory to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), along with many other Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs), Pakistan is part of a global commitment to halt and reverse the impacts of desertification, land degradation, and drought. The Convention — born out of the 1992 Earth Summit — now includes 197 parties and remains the world’s only legally binding international agreement linking environment and development to sustainable land management. Compliance with the agreement is legally binding for Pakistan and crucial given the country’s significant challenges related to desertification.
For Pakistan, the stakes are high.
Nearly 3.25 percent of Pakistan’s land area is degraded, affecting over 38 million people. Drought impacts are even more widespread. Nearly 30 percent of the country’s population is exposed to recurring dry spells. Another complication is Pakistan’s growing water crisis. Over the decades, Pakistan has transitioned from a water-rich country to one facing chronic water scarcity, with per capita availability expected to drop below 860 cubic meters by 2025, potentially making Pakistan the first water-scarce country in South Asia.
This crisis isn’t just environmental — it’s social.
Desertification carries a gender dimension. In forest-dependent communities, women are often at the frontline of climate stress. They are usually the ones who manage livestock grazing, firewood gathering, and water collection — tasks that are becoming harder and more dangerous due to resource depletion, affecting livelihoods and resulting in increased poverty and poor health outcomes, particularly for women and children. Moreover, as water sources dry up and distances grow, women and girls face greater risks and opportunity losses — including dropping out of school or losing income-generating time.
But Pakistan is taking action.
Pakistan ratified the UNCCD in February 1997. Compliance with the agreement is not only legally binding for Pakistan but crucial given the significant challenges it faces related to desertification.
In response, the Government of Pakistan has undertaken a series of important initiatives. Among the most prominent is the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami Project (TBTTP), launched in 2018 following the success of the Billion Tree Afforestation Project. TBTTP is the fourth-largest afforestation initiative in the world and the country’s largest environmental campaign to date. As a direct outcome of this initiative, forest cover in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has increased by nearly 6 percent to 26 percent while nearly two billion trees have been planted across the country, helping restore biodiversity, prevent soil erosion, and absorb carbon emissions.
Complementary efforts, from mangrove regeneration along the coast to watershed management in KP and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, have also helped reclaim degraded land and restore fragile ecosystems. These initiatives are now being scaled under the Green Pakistan Programme, with a renewed focus on biodiversity conservation and protected areas.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has been a long-standing partner in this journey. Through its Sustainable Land Management Programme, UNDP has supported land rehabilitation across over 19,000 hectares, stabilized sand dunes, and reached over 13,000 households with sustainable land practices. The project also informed critical policies and built national capacities to advance land degradation neutrality.
Moving forward, tackling desertification, land degradation, and drought in Pakistan will require area-specific, integrated solutions. These must go beyond tree planting — focusing instead on ecosystem restoration, sustainable natural resource use, and climate adaptation, with a special emphasis on vulnerable communities and women’s resilience.
There’s no time to lose.
With coherent action across sectors and levels, and support from global frameworks like the UNCCD, Pakistan can move toward a greener, more climate-resilient future. UNDP remains committed to working hand in hand with national and provincial governments to turn that vision into reality.
Authors:
Dr. Saleem Janjua
National Project Manager, Montreal Protocol, UNDP Pakistan
Numra Asif
Communication Associate, Montreal Protocol, UNDP Pakistan
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