Algiers/Nairobi, 12 February
2006 – For the first time the official celebrations
of World Environment Day (WED) will be held
in North Africa. At a press conference in
Algiers, the United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP) announced today that the
city would host the official celebrations.
This year's theme is Deserts and Desertification.
His Excellency Chérif Rahmani, the
Algerian Minister of Environment who is
also honorary UN spokesman for the International
Year of Deserts and Desertification said:
"My country, Algeria, feels honoured
to have been chosen by UNEP as the host
country for this Day. We feel doubly honoured:
first because the majority of our territory
is made up of deserts; and second, because
by honouring Algeria, all of Africa is honoured."
The UN General Assembly has designated the
year 2006 the International Year of Deserts
and Desertification. In keeping with tradition,
UNEP has chosen the theme for World Environment
Day to coincide with the International Year
in order to highlight this pressing environmental
issue.
According to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan:
"Drylands are found in all regions,
cover more than 40 per cent of the Earth
and are home to nearly 2 billion people
– one-third of the world’s population. For
most dryland dwellers, life is hard and
the future often precarious. They live on
the ecological, economic and social margins.
It is essential that we do not neglect them
or the fragile habitats on which they depend."
Desertification is about land degradation:
the loss of the land’s biological productivity,
caused by human-induced factors and climate
change. It affects one third of the earth’s
surface and over a billion people. Moreover,
it has potentially devastating consequences
in terms of social and economic costs.
UNEP Executive Director Klaus Toepfer said:
"Land is – next to water and air –
the very base of all life. But unlike air
and water which can be cleaned up and rehabilitated,
once soils are lost it can take millennia
for nature to recreate them. Human-induced
land degradation now affects all continents
and needs to be addressed urgently. It is
appropriate that attention should focus
on North Africa when we speak of the devastating
effects of desertification."
Speaking at a joint press conference with
UNEP's Director of Communications Eric Falt,
Minister Rahmani said: "A large portion
of Algeria – the second largest country
in Africa after Sudan – is covered by the
sands of the world's largest desert – the
Sahara. Like many of its neighboring countries,
Algeria is plagued by soil erosion from
over-grazing, and by drought and desertification."
World Environment Day, commemorated each
year on 5 June, is one of the principal
vehicles through which the United Nations
stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment
and enhances political attention and action.
The day's agenda is to give a human face
to environmental issues; empower people
to become active agents of sustainable and
equitable development; promote an understanding
that communities are pivotal to changing
attitudes towards environmental issues;
and advocate partnership which will ensure
all nations and peoples enjoy a safer and
more prosperous future. World Environment
Day is also a people's event with colourful
activities such as street rallies, bicycle
parades, green concerts, essays and poster
competitions in schools, tree planting,
as well as recycling and clean-up campaigns.
For more information, please see the website
http://www.unep.org/wed/2006 or contact
Eric Falt, Director, UNEP Division of Communications
and Public Information, on Tel: +254 20
762 3292; Mobile: +254 733 682 656, E-mail:
eric.falt@unep.org
Nick Nuttall, UNEP Spokesperson, Office
of the Executive Director, on Tel: +254
20 762 3084; Mobile: +254 733 632 755, E-mail:
nick.nuttall@unep.org
If there is no prompt response, please contact
Elisabeth Waechter, UNEP Associate Media
Officer, on Tel: 254 20 762 3088, Mobile:
254 720 173968, E-mail: elisabeth.waechter@unep.org
