Representatives of several UN agencies have gathered in Washington, DC, to continue planning for the International Year of Deserts and Desertification in 2006.

The meeting, which took place on 16 November 2004, involved the Secretariat of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, UNDP, UNEP, IFAD, the World Bank and UNESCO. A strategy paper was recently circulated outlining various awareness raising events and tools that could be used in preparing for 2006. Ideas under consideration at the meeting included the hosting of a scientific conference on desertification and appointment of goodwill ambassadors. The strategy paper will be finalized during a meeting that will take place on the sidelines of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, which is taking place in December 2004 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The UN Resolution on the International Year of Deserts and Desertification, 2006.