Sudan's NCR expert thanks Iran's role in combating desertification

Tarig El-Gamri who is an expert working with the Environmental and Natural Resources and Desertification Research Institute affiliated to the NCR made the remarks in an interview with IRNA.

There are efforts to establish shelter belts to control the sand movement from the Nile and from the agricultural fields, El-Gamri said, noting that Sudan is in need of scientific help to combat sand and dust storms.

“In 1992, our institution was mandated to establish a desert research department on desertification and by that time, we looked into every aspect of desertification and possible ways and measures to control the problem and Iran experience in this field have been always useful to us,” he noted.

El-Gamri hailed Iran role in fighting desertification and said that Iran’s efforts is admirable.

Combating sand and dust storms will enhance implementation of UN Sustainable Development Goals at the global level because it promotes people’s livelihoods and creates better habitat for the people, he noted.

El-Gamri blamed the climate change and land degradation as well as excessive use of natural resources as the reasons behind increase of desertification and emerging of sand and dust storms in most parts of the world.

He called the US President Donald Trump decision to exit the Paris Climate Agreement a catastrophe and said that it is a wrong decision against the interests of US citizens which undermines global effort for protection of environment.

The First International Conference on Combating Sand and Dust Storms was held in Tehran on July 3-5 July 2017. The international conference was hosted by the Department of Environment and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, with the cooperation of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat, UN Environment and the UN Development Program, in collaboration with other relevant UN entities.

Interview by Hamdollah Emadi Heydari

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