She said Africa needs to move land restoration from the aid column into the investment column by developing bankable landscape programmes, strengthening land tenure, deploying risk-sharing instruments and ensuring that farmers and pastoralists benefit from carbon and other emerging environmental markets.

Rangelands cover more than half of the world's land surface and support around two billion people. Yet up to half of these ecosystems are degraded or at risk.

Governments, development banks, funds and businesses at UNCCD COP17 in Mongolia have announced $1.3 billion in new and pipeline financing for land restoration and drought…