Government attends fight against desertification

THE Deputy Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Rejoice Mabudafhasi, is in Geneva, Switzerland to attend the Fifth Conference of Parties (COP5) of the Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The gathering is part of international efforts to intensify the fight against desertification and will also inform deliberations next year at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg on the matter. "Environmental degradation contributes to the high levels of poverty in the developing world and deliberate actions need to be taken to address this. The world community must take urgent decisive action," said Mabudafhasi. The South African delegation, which is representative of all departments that have an environmental function, is being be led by Maria Mbengashe, Chief Director: Biodiversity and Heritage in the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism. The convention ends on October 12. (Miguel de Sousa)