Page "United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification" Paragraph 1

The Convention, the only convention stemming from a direct recommendation of the Rio Conference's Agenda 21, was adopted in Paris on 17 June 1994 and entered into force in December 1996.

It is the first and only internationally legally binding framework set up to address the problem of desertification.

The Convention is based on the principles of participation, partnership and decentralization-the backbone of Good Governance and Sustainable Development.

It now has 194 country Parties to the Convention, making it truly global in reach.