Africa’s Pastoralists Need More Than COP17’s $1.2 billion Rangelands Pledge

Closing plenary at UNCCD COP17 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Credit: Anastasia Rodopoulou/ENB-IISDby Kizito Makoye (dar es salaam)Monday, August 31, 2026Inter Press Service DAR ES SALAAM, August 31 (IPS) - When the rains fail across Tanzania’s northern Maasai Steppe, herders drive their cattle farther in search of pasture and water. Boreholes run low. Cattle lose weight, milk yields fall and families begin selling cows, often their main source of livelihood. If the dry spell persists, herds can die, leaving families facing hunger.What is happening on the Maasai Steppe is part of a wider debate over how the world’s rangelands should be restored. At the UN desertification summit in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, governments backed a $1.2 billion programme to restore rangelands, alongside measures to repair degraded land and prepare for drought.For African pastoralists, the question is whether that money will reach them before the next drought.Governments, meanwhile, failed to seal a global drought agreement, pushing the dispute into another round of negotiations in Egypt in 2028.The consequences are particularly serious in Africa, where millions depend on livestock for food and income. Restoring...