In 2018, during the 24th Senior Officials Meeting of the United Nations Environment Management Group (EMG), was decided the formation of a Coalition to Combat Sand and Dust Storms. This was in response to UN General Assembly

Currently, 19 Members of the Coalition include UN agencies and non-UN agencies: CBD, ESCAP, ESCWA, FAO, ICAO, ITU, IUCN, UNCCD, UNDESA, UNDP, UNDRR, UNECE, UNEP, UNFCCC, UN-Habitat, UNITAR, WHO, WMO, World Bank.

Mandate of the SDS Coalition

• Promote and coordinate a collaborative UN-system response to SDS, on local, regional and global scales, ensuring unified and coherent actions are taken
• Facilitate exchange of knowledge, data and best practices among Coalition members to promote effective and coherent action on SDS across the UN system
• Encourage and promote collaboration on initiatives and action within the Members of the Coalition on SDS, including advocacy and funding initiatives
• Facilitate dialogue and collaboration amongst affected countries and the UN system in addressing SDS issues collectively
• Facilitate the capacity building of Member States, raise their awareness and enhance their preparedness and response to SDS in critical regions

Working Groups of the Coalition

The working groups, with their leads and co-leads, aim to catalyze global and regional actions to reduce SDS impacts on people’s health, agriculture, the environment and other economic activities.

• WG1 Adaptation and mitigation: UNDP and FAO
• WG2 Forecasting and early warning: WMO
• WG3 Health and safety: WHO
• WG4 Policy and governance: UNCCD

WG5 Mediation and regional collaboration: ESCAP and ESCWA

Additional links

• UN Coalition to Combat Sand and Dust Storms – UN Environment Management Group
• Sand and dust storms - Coalition
• WHO Global Air Quality Guidelines
• Sand and dust storms compendium
• International Day of Combating Sand and Dust Storms