Excellences, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,
It gives me great pleasure to extend to you all a very warm welcome on behalf of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Dr. Nkosazana DlaminZuma and on my behalf to this important event on the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and Sahel Initiative, on the margins of the 21st Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Let me sincerely thank the Government and People of the Republic of France, for being such wonderful host despite all odds.

Our gratitude to go to the Executive Secretary of the UNCCD, Mme Monique Barbut and her team for the hard work and fruitful collaboration with the team at the AU Commission and Partners for making this happen, and congratulations for the successful organization of the UNCCD COP 12, where Land Degradation Neutrality was adopted. This is much appreciated. Let me also thank all those who are in attendance especially our honorable Ministers and the President of the African Development Bank, We say a big thank you.

The Great Green Wall for the Sahara and Sahel Initiative (GGWSSI) is a major landscape restoration programme that is already making a vital contribution in addressing the planet’s urgent adverse impacts of climate change. With a bold vision to go ‘green’ the circum-sahara region of Africa the Great Green Wall supports local communities across Africa to adapt and build resilience to climate change, as well as boost food security and spur economic growth.

Excellences, Distinguished Guests, and participants,

The benefits of this ground-breaking Pan African initiative extend way beyond the African continent: it is estimated that up to 3 million tonnes of carbon could be sequestered annually through the initiative potentially making it humanity’s largest carbon sinks and an initiative of huge global importance. In fact, the Great Green Wall promises to benefit a host of other global challenges too, including crises in food shortages, conflict resolution, international migration and even terrorism, considering the Natural resources degradation- Conflict- Migration and terrorism nexus.
Today the Initiative is being implemented in over 21 countries supported by National, Regional and International institutions. Practically, a harmonized Regional strategy for its implementation was adopted by AMCEN in 2012; 14 countries, so far have developed and are implementingthe National Action Plans; the Sahel and West Africa Programme and BRICKS is invested over 1.1.billion USD from World Bank, GEF, TerrAfrica and 12 countries, supported by CILSS, OSS and IUCN. FAO and UNCCD, with funds from EU are investing more than 35Million Euros in their Action Against Desertification and the FLEUVE projects, KEW, SOS SAHEL |International France, Wallonia Brussels International, GIZ, UNEP, UNDP, ICRAF, and others, are all putting in a lot of efforts for the realization of the Vision. It has to be said that in-country investment so far surpasses all grants and funding from Partners and Collaborators. For effective coordination, capitalization and knowledge management, advocacy and maintaining the political momentum, the Commission in collaboration with some Key Partners have set up the Regional Coordination hub at AUC Headquarters in Addis Ababa. The Pan African Agency for the Initiative, created within the CENSAD member states is well established and rooted in Nouakchott, Mauritania. Thanks especially to the governments of Chad, Mauritania and the 8 countries that signed the convention. In addition, the integration of the Agency as per the AMCEN decision as a specialized organ of the AUC DREA is in progress and I am working closely with the Executive Secretary. Furthermore, the Specialised Technical Committee for Agriculture, Rural Economy, Water and Environment, adopted a resolution for the up scaling of the initiative to other Eastern and Southern Africa Dry lands countries.

Excellences, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,
This is indeed an opportune time to discuss important challenges facing the Sahel, the Horn of Africa and other Dry land regions of Africa and the opportunities inherent in a common, coordinated response. We are all very much aware of the impacts of climate change and land degradation on the most vulnerable ecosystems and people in our region. If climate change and land degradation continue unchecked, a large section of our population will be under greater threat of hunger, water stress and increased poverty. Across the entire region, with a lack of access to productive land, water and energy, we risk suffering dramatic falls in productivity and lost economic opportunities, greater radicalization and forced migration resulting to resources use and access related conflicts. .

Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,

A Heads of State Summit on the Great Green Wall and Lake Chad was hosted yesterday by the President of the France and host of COP 21, Republic, H.E. Francois Hollande. The key outcomes of the Summit are some commitments, which include:

1. Collaboration on an enabling policy framework that also encourages active, diverse multi-stakeholder participation, in the implementation of the Great Green Wall and in the rehabilitation of Lake Chad.

2. Commitment to promoting practices that restore and rehabilitate degraded lands in order to achieve land degradation neutrality, as outlined in the Global Goals for Sustainable Development, and contribute to the sequestration of 3 million tons of carbon per year in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa;

3. Pledge to fulfil the vision and ensure full implementation of the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and Sahel Initiative by 2030 in order to address climate change and its worst impacts, support food and water security, promote green jobs and sustainable development opportunities that help eradicate poverty;

4. Undertake to provide sustainable, renewable energy for rural populations across the region and to enhance access to land;

5. Agree to share knowledge and best practices across borders and to provide technical guidance and financial support to countries implementing projects as part of the Initiative.

6. Pledge a pipeline of US$4 billion of to support implementation of the Great Green Wall for the Sahara and Sahel Initiative in the next 5 years.

Excellences, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Now is the time to reflect on what has been achieved so far, seize the momentum and outline a vision for how the Great Green Wall – and other land restoration initiatives of its kind – can help propel us all towards a fertile future. We are therefore gathered here today to leverage the new momentum behind efforts to take the Great Green Wall Initiative to higher scale. We are convinced that the Great Green Wall Initiative is a game changer and can become a modern world wonder – and deliver important benefits beyond the African continent. In growing Africa’s legacy for the world, based on human endeavor and ingenuity, we will contribute to both climate change mitigation and adaptation and create an environment where our people thrive.

Before I conclude, let me extend our sincere gratitude to all those Partner institutions that have stood by the Commission from the beginning of this initiative from 2007 to date. Permit to recognize the EU, FAO, Secretariat of the UNCCD, World Bank,CILSS, IUCN,OSS,UNEP, UNDP, KEW, SOS SAHEL, ICRAF, Wallonia Brussels International, etc. Our specially gratitude goes to the Members states especially President Obasanjo, who launched the Initiative at the January 2007 Summit and Senegal who has been sustaining the process, Chad and Mauritania for supporting tirelessly the Pan African Agency, to all our Honorable Ministers and distinguished delegates who believe in this Pan African vision. I call on the African Development Bank, other Partners, and all of you to support this laudable Initiative, to become a global initiative, with best practices now being shared with countries and communities outside the African region with our brother and sisters in the Caribbean and the Pacific regions.

I thank you all for your kind attention.