The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is calling for accelerated efforts to restore degraded forests and landscapes, warning that land degradation is threatening food security, biodiversity and livelihoods worldwide.
FAO Assistant Director-General and Director of the Forestry Division Zhimin Wu says 489 million hectares of forest were lost globally between 1990 and 2025, while more than 460 million hectares remain degraded worldwide.
“Restoring these damaged forests and landscapes should not be treated as optional,” Wu said, describing restoration as essential to meeting food security, climate and biodiversity goals.
He said about 1.56 billion hectares of land, including forests, croplands, pasturelands, drylands and wetlands, are degraded.
Wu said integrated forest and landscape restoration can help reverse the trend through tree planting, natural regeneration and improved land management, with local communities involved.
In southern Kenya, a community-led initiative is combining traditional knowledge with the low-cost half-moon method to restore land degraded by drought and overgrazing. More than 700 women and young people are leading the effort, with improved soils, returning native grasses and wildlife among the reported results.
In conclusion, Wu said 206.5 million hectares are currently under restoration, against the 470 million hectares needed to meet global 2030 goals.
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