International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP)
initiative

Where does it come from and where are we going?

In the 42nd FAO Conference, which was held in the presence of the Agriculture
Ministers of the country members of the Food and Agriculture Organization of
the United Nations (FAO) on 14-18 June 2021, the participant agreed to name the
year 2026 future timeline as International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists
(IYRP).

In the Final step, it should be approved at the next UN
General Assembly in New York in September 2021. Under the current arrangements,
FAO Director-General should formally submit the request for ratification of the
year as International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP) to the
President of the General Assembly.  

Milestones passed on long road to IYRP

•      IRC/IGC 2008 Inner Mongolia,
PRC: idea arose

•      IRC 2011 Argentina:
Resolutions calling for IY of Rangelands and Global Rangelands Assessment

•      Society for Range
Management (SRM) and Rangeland Partnership 2015: reinvigorate efforts for IYRP

•      UN Environmental Assembly
(UNEA-2) 2016: Resolution on promoting rangelands & pastoralism (R&P)
and call for gap analysis

•      IRC 2016 Canada:
Agreement on action plan to promote IYRP and form “International Steering
Group” (ISG)

•      2018–19: UNEP-funded
R&P gap analysis

•      UNEA-4 2019: Africa
Group resolution for IYRP

•      Aug 2019: Mongolian
Government proposed IYRP to UN; ISG became “International Support Group”
to Mongolian team

•      Aug 2019: Mongolian
Government proposed IYRP to UN; ISC became “International Support Group” to
Mongolian team

•      Oct 2020: FAO
Committee on Agriculture (COAG) endorsed Mongolian Government’s proposal for
IYRP in 2026

•      Proposal supported by
over 150 organisations and over 50 national governments

•      Next hurdles in UN
process:

- FAO Council Dec 2020

- FAO Conference June 2021

- United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Sept 2021

 It should be noted that Dr. Badripour FRWO senior
Expert who participated actively on his personal capacity in the IYRP
International Support Group meetings was appointed as the Chairman of Middle
East and North Africa group in regional meeting (December 2020);

For more information, a website has been developed:
www.iyrp.info

Important contacts

•      ISG Chair = Jim
O’Rourke (jorourke@csc.edu)

•      ISG Vice Chair = Maryam
Niamir-Fuller (mniafull2@gmail.com)

•      ISG Communications Team
= 

–     Barbara Hutchinson (barbaraH@cals.arizona.edu)

–     Ann Waters-Bayer (waters-bayer@web.de)

–     Engin Yilmaz (engin@bican.net)

•      IYRP archives = 

https://globalrangelands.org/international-year-rangelands-and-pastoralists-initiative

https://www.frw.ir/02/En/News/News.aspx?nwsId=86295