China and Mongolia have committed to conducting a series of joint research and capacity-building activities to promote the construction of ecological shelter zone on the Mongolian Plateau and to mitigate the impact of sand and dust hazards in Northeast Asia.

On 1 September 2023, to implement the important consensus reached by the heads of states of China and Mongolia, a conference was held in Ulaanbaatar between China International Development Cooperation Agency, National Forestry and Grassland Administration and Mongolia’s Ministry of Economy and Development, Ministry of Construction and Urban Development, Ministry of Environment and Tourism as well as the State Forestry Administration of Mongolia. During the conference, the two sides jointly signed a framework agreement on supporting Mongolia’s afforestation campaign “Billion Trees”, and carrying out joint efforts to combat desertification. Meanwhile, the China-Mongolia Cooperation Center for Combating Desertification was inaugurated.

As an important platform for China and Mongolia to jointly combat desertification, the Center will, under the guidance and support of the development cooperation and forestry authorities of both countries, participate in Mongolia’s “Billion Trees” campaign, including establishing ecological protection and restoration demonstration sites in Mongolia, promoting China's advanced afforestation and grass planting technologies as well as desertification prevention and control technologies and models, building sand and dust monitoring sites in the Gobi Desert, and carrying out sand and dust storm monitoring and early warning. China and Mongolia also agreed to conduct a series of joint research and capacity building activities to jointly promote the construction of an ecological shelter zone in the Mongolian Plateau to mitigate the damage caused by sand and dust weather in Northeast Asia.

It was reported that the China-Mongolia Cooperation Center for Combating Desertification would establish a three-level management mechanism, namely a joint Committee, a joint Working Group and a Technical Panel, which would function as the Center's guiding body, operating body and consulting body respectively. As the administrative body of the joint Working Group, Chinese Academy of Forestry, under the leadership of the China International Development Cooperation Agency and the National Forestry and Grassland Administration of China and in cooperation with designated authorities from Mongolia, will take charge of the routine management and operation of China-Mongolia Cooperation Center for Combating Desertification.

Prof. Ye Zhi, Board Chair of Chinese Academy of Forestry, attended the lunching ceremony of the China-Mongolia Cooperation Center for Combating Desertification and introduced the future operating mechanism of the Center. Experts for desertification prevention and control from the Chinese Academy of Forestry also attended the event.

Lunching ceremony of the China-Mongolia Center

(Photo source: Science and Technology Daily on 9 September 2023)