Restoring land before drought becomes a disaster: Lessons from Georgia

From crisis response to prevention

Too often, drought is addressed only after its impacts are already severe. Emergency support is essential, but it cannot be the only answer. The IUCN publication 'Restoring ecosystems to reduce drought risk: Nature-based Solutions for drought' underlines this wider lesson: drought affects households and rural livelihoods, but also sectors such as energy, agriculture, water supply and industry. Yet many responses remain reactive and crisis-oriented.

At UNCCD COP17, IUCN is calling for a more proactive approach to drought: one that connects land, water, soil, biodiversity and climate action, and embeds Nature-based Solutions in planning and response. In Mongolia, we should help move the global conversation from managing drought impacts to reducing drought risk. This requires stronger policies, better coordination, predictable finance and meaningful participation of those managing land every day.

Georgia’s growing drought challenge

With changing climate patterns, Georgia is experiencing a significant increase in temperatures and changes in precipitation levels. These changes are resulting in a rise in the intensity and duration of droughts that affect the most vulnerable communities, making the poor even poorer.

Through the project Restoring Ecosystems to Reduce Drought Risk and Increase Resilience, CENN and IUCN have been working with relevant national and local authorities, as well as community members, especially farmers, to increase their awareness of Nature-based Solutions and how they can be used in drought prevention and mitigation. Country dialogue and thematic training also helped elaborate a roadmap for and in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment and Agriculture of Georgia. The roadmap highlights the need to integrate Nature-based Solutions in drought management by clarifying institutional responsibilities, preparing a drought response strategy and national action plan, aligning national legislation and programmes with international experiences, piloting NbS-adapted models and projects, and developing incentive mechanisms for drought prevention.

Local action, global lessons

The need for this shift is visible in Dedoplistskaro Municipality, one of the most drought-affected areas of Georgia. Although Georgia is rich in forests, Dedoplistskaro is an exception, with forests occupying only 5% of the territory. Due to unsustainable forest management, excessive grazing and negative natural factors, most of the forests have been degraded, as confirmed by the forest inventory carried out in 2022.

To respond, IUCN and CENN supported the restoration of a 93-hectare forest stand through on-the-ground small grants initiatives. The assisted natural regeneration project, implemented by the National Forest Agency of Georgia, helped protect the area from disturbances and provided essential tools and equipment. Healthy forests act as natural water reservoirs, helping regulate local hydrological cycles and maintain soil moisture.

A second example comes from Chiatura Municipality, a mountainous and drought-prone area where manganese mining has severely damaged the local ecosystem. Unsystematic mining destroyed valley slopes, damaged forests and spring waters, and contributed to pollution of wells and rivers. The anthropogenic origin of degraded soils has resulted in over 200 hectares of desertified territories.

There, IUCN and CENN supported a soil rehabilitation project initiated by a small women-led community-based organisation, the association “Side by Side”. Working with local authorities and youth, it rehabilitated two plots of land, up to one hectare each, and planted 500 saplings. A petition signed by residents also called for municipal funding for restoration, resulting in the allocation of close to 10,000 EUR in the 2024 budget.

These examples are local, but the lessons are global. Nature-based Solutions are not abstract concepts. They are forest stands protected from degradation, soils restored, saplings planted by young people, residents asking local authorities to invest in restoration, and women-led organisations turning concern into action.

They also show why drought resilience depends on cooperation. National authorities, public agencies, civil society organisations, farmers, youth and community groups all have a role to play. No drought policy can succeed if it does not reflect the knowledge and needs of the people most affected. 

A call to action 

As governments, experts, civil society and communities engage in UNCCD COP17, Georgia’s experience offers a clear message: drought resilience begins before drought strikes. It begins with restoring ecosystems, strengthening local capacity, supporting community leadership and ensuring that national policies make room for practical, locally grounded solutions.

If COP17 is to accelerate meaningful action, it should help countries move beyond emergency response and invest in the ecosystems and people that can reduce drought risk from the ground up. This includes advancing proactive drought management, embedding Nature-based Solutions in national planning, and supporting farmers and local communities, pointing the way towards a more resilient future for the planet.