The 19th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 13) to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) was held in Ordos, Inner Mongolia, China.

During the conference, Juha I. Uitto, Director of the GEF Independent Evaluation Office, presented key findings from the recently completed GEF Land Degradation Focal Area Study, highlighting innovative approaches to assessing impacts and results in GEF-supported land degradation projects. The presentation underscored how strengthened evaluation methods can inform more effective, evidence-based responses to land degradation and desertification.