Desertification poses existential threat to agricultural lands in Arab countries

Like many other countries, Arab nations grappling with food supply chain crises are also combating desertification, which poses a strategic threat not only to their food security but also to their economies and political stability.

According to research published on the Arab Monetary Fund's website, around 35.7 million hectares of agricultural land in the Arab world are affected by desertification. This corresponds to 18% of the total cultivable area, primarily in regions bordering the Sahara Desert.

In the Arab world, 68.4% of the land is undergoing desertification, with 20% facing a risk of desertification. Only 11.6% of land remains non-desertified.

Countries like Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Qatar are considered to have "desertified lands" according to the research.

In ten countries including Egypt, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Jordan, Yemen, and Morocco, the proportion of desertified land ranges from 60% to 98%.

Some countries, like Somalia, Syria, and Iraq, have more than 50% of their territory under the threat of desertification.