COP15 of the United Nations Convention
The COP15 theme, ‘Land. Life. Legacy: From scarcity to prosperity'
Republic of Moldova, COP 15 Aliona Isac,

 

 

Mister President, Distinguished delegates,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

On behalf of the Government of the Republic of Moldova, I would like to congratulate and thank the Government of Cote d'Ivoire and the UNCCD Secretariat for the good organization and conduct of COP15.

And for the delegates who arrived here in Abidjan, I wish them a fruitful activity together and to find the best solutions to sustainably govern the most precious resource - SOIL.

My name is Aliona and I representRepublic of Moldova, one of the Eastern European countries that has an economy based on the agriculture. Of course, for me and my compatriots, the most precious natural resource is SOIL / LAND - an invaluable national wealth, because my country has no oil, no gas, no brilliance, only fertile soil.

I am the daughter of a farmer who raised me and educated me with love and care for SOIL / LAND, always being with my father at home and in the field I got used to and know the SOIL well by color, structure and even smell.

But at present the Republic of Moldova is facing serious problems of SOIL / LAND degradation, the causes being multiple and complex.

The main factor is anthropic. Life and economic activity leave a serious mark on the SOIL.Climate change, biodiversity degradation, and droughts catalyze the process of desertification, causing soil loss. Every 4 years, the Republic of Moldova faces droughts that cause economic losses of over 50 percent of national income.

In order to oppose these unfortunate phenomena, the Republic of Moldova has aligned itself with the implementation of UNCCD policies. Today my country has managed to present the Report on Setting Targets for achieving LDN, has joined the Drought Initiative, elaborated the National Drought Plan. These documents are well written and with clear arguments on how we can promote sustainable policies in SOIL / Land management.

But for the action on paper to become a reality, financial support is needed. Moldova is a country with a transition economy and as a beginner in private agriculture does not have enough financial resources to support farmers to implement sustainable soil protection projects and practices.

Based on this,Dear COP participants, donors and partners, I propose to create the Global Soil Fund, analogous to the Green Climate Fund or World Wide Fund with the destination and direct access of the governments of developing and underdeveloped countries.Because only fertile soil can be the key to stopping climate andbiodiversity degradation.

It depends on our decisions today whether my children will have bread on the table.