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                              <DIV style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><STRONG>Africa 
                              developing new tools to build resilience to future 
                              drought 
                          shocks</STRONG><BR> </DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--[if mso]>
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                              href="https://mailchi.mp/unccd/africa-developing-new-tools-to-build-resilience-to-future-drought-shocks?e=2649914cd5" 
                              target=_blank>View this email in your browser</A> 
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                                <DIV style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><SPAN 
                                style="COLOR: #006400"><SPAN 
                                style="FONT-SIZE: 14px"><STRONG>Africa 
                                Developing New Tools to Build Resilience to 
                                Future Drought 
                                Shocks</STRONG></SPAN></SPAN><BR><BR> <BR><STRONG>FOR 
                                IMMEDIATE RELEASE</STRONG><BR>  
 </DIV>
                                <DIV style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><STRONG>Bonn, 
                                </STRONG><STRONG>23</STRONG><STRONG> October 
                                2019</STRONG> – Droughts have decimated 
                                communities and livelihoods in Africa for long. 
                                This year alone, over <A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                href="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=667b038ada&e=2649914cd5">45 
                                million people across Africa</A>, mostly in 
                                Eastern and Southern Africa, are food insecure 
                                due to prolonged droughts.<BR><BR>The Africa 
                                Risk Capacity (ARC) and the United Nations 
                                Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) 
                                announced they will collaborate to support the 
                                development of financial tools to help Africa to 
                                adapt and become resilient to future drought and 
                                other extreme weather events.<BR> <BR>The 
                                partnership will support African countries in 
                                managing the impact of extreme weather events, 
                                including drought. It will also seek to leverage 
                                private sector resources through the development 
                                of new financial instruments that can provide 
                                insurance protection and other funding to 
                                mitigate these risks.<BR> <BR>The 
                                announcement was marked by the signing of a 
                                Memorandum of Understanding by Ibrahim Thiaw, 
                                UNCCD Executive Secretary, and Mohamed Beavogui, 
                                ARC Director General, during a two-day technical 
                                workshop convened on 22 and 23 October in Bonn, 
                                Germany.<BR> <BR>The workshop is reviewing 
                                the proposed principles and work of the eXtreme 
                                Climate Facility (XCF). XCF is a new financial 
                                vehicle aiming to tap into capital market 
                                resources to provide financial support to 
                                countries affected by extreme weather 
                                events.<BR> <BR>Technical experts gathered 
                                at the workshop are exploring the robustness of 
                                the core elements of the XCF. These include the 
                                financial products and their underlying index, 
                                viable alternative market-based solutions and 
                                the partnerships that are essential to deliver 
                                both the product and the aims.<BR> <BR>The 
                                process for the XCF began in March 2014 when the 
                                African Union Conference of Ministers of Finance 
                                requested the ARC, by decision no. 927(XLVII), 
                                at the Seventh AU-ECA Joint Annual Meetings in 
                                Abuja, Nigeria, to develop a financing mechanism 
                                to enhance Member States’ response to the 
                                impacts of increasing climate 
                                volatility.<BR> <BR>The first Special 
                                Report on Climate Change and Land released just 
                                three months ago by the authoritative 
                                Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change <A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                href="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=9719bbf025&e=2649914cd5">warns 
                                that droughts may increase in frequency and 
                                intensity in much of 
                                Africa</A>.<BR> <BR><EM>“The message is 
                                clear. We will see an increasing number of 
                                droughts with unprecedented severity, which are 
                                exacerbated by climate change. No country or 
                                region, rich or poor, is immune to the vagaries 
                                of drought. The</EM><EM> ARC-led</EM><EM> XCF 
                                will become an important tool to help African 
                                countries to cope effectively with the impacts 
                                of drought</EM><EM>,</EM><EM>”</EM><EM> said 
                                Ibrahim Thiaw during the 
                                ceremony.</EM><BR> <BR><EM>“</EM><EM>Currently, 
                                through the </EM><A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                href="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=97023ea5fe&e=2649914cd5"><EM>D</EM><EM>rought 
                                </EM><EM>I</EM><EM>nitiative</EM></A><EM>, the 
                                UNCCD is</EM><EM> helping </EM><EM>35 
                                </EM><EM>of </EM><EM>Africa’</EM><EM>s</EM> 
                                <EM>57 </EM><EM>countries</EM><EM> to create the 
                                mechanisms they need to take early action to 
                                avert drought </EM><EM>disaster</EM><EM>s. 
                                </EM><EM>Today, Africa is ramping up pre-emptive 
                                actions as a unified front against future 
                                drought and climate-induced disasters in the 
                                region</EM><EM>,</EM><EM>” Thiaw</EM><EM> 
                                added</EM><EM>.</EM><BR> <BR><EM>“Reducing 
                                the impacts of drought and other natural 
                                disasters by helping Member States’ improve 
                                climate resilience through innovative mitigation 
                                and risk financing instruments are key to our 
                                mandate,” said ASG Beavogui. 
                                </EM><BR> <BR><EM>“</EM><EM>The Agreement 
                                signed today with UNCCD will create a functional 
                                synergy in our efforts to help countries better 
                                understand their risk profiles, improve 
                                knowledge and strengthen capacities for climate 
                                adaptation and food security,</EM><EM>” Beavogui 
                                concluded.</EM><BR> <BR>As designed 
                                currently, the XCF has a three-point agenda; to 
                                connect to private sector financing, to 
                                encourage best practice in public policy and to 
                                integrate climate science into its 
                                functions.<BR> <BR><STRONG><U>Notes to 
                                Editors</U></STRONG><BR>A 2-page background note 
                                is attached to this press release. Download it 
                                here: <A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                href="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=41ee343f2c&e=2649914cd5">https://www.unccd.int/sites/default/files/inline-files/ARC_Background_NoteonTRF.pdf</A><BR>Download 
                                picture here: <A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                href="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=0c56f6b6a7&e=2649914cd5">https://www.unccd.int/sites/default/files/inline-images/ARC_UNCCD_Chiefs.jpg</A><BR>Caption 
                                for Picture: <SPAN 
                                style="LINE-HEIGHT: 117%; FONT-FAMILY: segoe ui,sans-serif; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US" 
                                lang=EN-US>L-R: UN-ASG Mohamed Beavogui, 
                                Director-General, African Risk Capacity and 
                                UN-USG Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary, 
                                United Nations Convention to Combat 
                                Desertification with copies of the MoU. 
                                </SPAN><BR> <BR><EM><U>Additional Quotes 
                                about the XCF</U></EM><BR><SPAN 
                                style="FONT-FAMILY: segoe ui,sans-serif; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US" 
                                lang=EN-GB>ASG Mohamed Beavogui, the 
                                Director-General of ARC</SPAN>: 
                                <EM>“</EM><EM>Since the inception of the XCF 
                                programme in 2014, this is the first Technical 
                                Review Forum where the overall end-to-end 
                                framework is considered and reviewed. Our 
                                guiding principle since the creation of ARC is 
                                to interrogate our concepts by subjecting our 
                                models to the best available experts in that 
                                field. We did this with our drought tool, the 
                                African RiskView, which remains the 
                                best-in-class to-date for Africa. We are 
                                grateful to all our partners and industry 
                                experts that have joined us in this 
                                process</EM>.”<BR> <BR><EM>“The World Bank 
                                supports countries with climate adaptation 
                                measures and is committed to working with 
                                countries to strengthen financial resilience 
                                against climate and disaster shocks,”</EM> said 
                                Mr. Miguel Navarro-Martin, Manager of Banking 
                                Products, World Bank Treasury. <EM>“Our focus is 
                                on helping countries to protect their fiscal 
                                accounts against external risks. The XCF concept 
                                being developed by ARC provides an opportunity 
                                for African countries to access financial 
                                solutions to manage disaster risk and to fund a 
                                portfolio of climate resilient 
                                investments,”</EM> he further 
                                stated<EM>.</EM><BR> <BR>Commending ARC and 
                                UNCCD on the initiative, Dr. Astrid Zwick, 
                                Head of InsuResilience Secretariat remarked, 
                                “<EM>The centrality of our collaboration with 
                                countries is to enable a more timely and 
                                reliable post-disaster response. Critical to 
                                this are preparedness and readiness using 
                                climate disaster risk finance and insurance 
                                solutions. The XCF promises to be one of those 
                                instruments that can complement ongoing efforts 
                                in countries to avert, minimize and address 
                                climate disaster risks by strengthening local 
                                adaptive capacity and resilience. We are glad to 
                                be part of this 
                                process.”</EM><BR> <BR><STRONG><EM><U>Quotes 
                                Relating to the 
                                MoU</U></EM></STRONG><BR><EM>UN-ASG Mohamed 
                                Beavogui, the Director-General of ARC: “The 
                                mandate of the UNCCD resonates with ARC’s 
                                mission. </EM><EM>Reducing the impacts of 
                                drought and other natural disasters by helping 
                                Member States’ improve climate resilience 
                                through innovative mitigation and risk financing 
                                instruments are key to our mandate</EM><EM>. The 
                                Agreement will create a functional synergy in 
                                our efforts to help countries better understand 
                                their risk profiles, improve knowledge and 
                                strengthen capacities for climate adaptation and 
                                food security. </EM><BR> <BR><EM>Executive 
                                Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw: “Today marks the 
                                beginning of a unified front against drought and 
                                climate-induced disasters in the African region. 
                                We currently manage programmes closely related 
                                to climate adaptation and natural disaster risk, 
                                including the Drought Initiative. </EM><EM>Our 
                                key</EM><EM> aims </EM><EM>are</EM><EM> to 
                                support the establishment and implementation of 
                                national drought plans</EM><EM> and</EM><EM> 
                                mobilise innovative financial instruments to 
                                better mitigate the risks of extreme climate 
                                situations.”</EM><BR> <BR>For technical 
                                information on XCF:<BR>Oluwatosin ADESIYAN, Lead 
                                Advisor, 
                                XC<BR>oluwatosin.adesiyan@wfp.org<BR> <BR>Media 
                                Inquiries about the ARC:<BR>Chinedu Moghalu, 
                                Senior Communications Specialist<BR><A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly">chinedu.moghalu@arc.int</A>; 
                                <A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly">chinedu.moghalu@wfp.org</A><BR> <BR>For 
                                technical information about the UNCCD 
                                Contact:<BR>Ms. Camilla Nordheim-Larsen, 
                                Programme Coordinator<BR><A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly">cnordheim@unccd.int</A><BR> <BR>For 
                                media interviews during the Bonn meeting, 
                                contact:<BR>Wagaki Wischnewski, Public 
                                Information and Media Officer<BR><A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly">wwischnewski@unccd.int</A><BR> <BR><STRONG><U>About 
                                Africa Risk Capacity</U></STRONG><BR>The ARC 
                                Agency leads the ARC Group, a development 
                                finance institution that provides financial 
                                tools and infrastructure to help countries 
                                manage natural disaster risk and adapt to 
                                climate change. The Agency currently has a 
                                membership of 34 African Union (AU) Member 
                                States and is supervised by a ministerial-level 
                                governing board elected by its Conference of the 
                                Parties. The African Risk Capacity model is 
                                home-grown, innovative, cost-effective, and is 
                                proving that it can assist member-states to 
                                strengthen their capacities to better plan, 
                                prepare and respond to extreme weather events 
                                and natural disasters, thereby achieving the 
                                food security for their populations. Since 2014, 
                                32 policies have been signed by Member States 
                                with US$73million paid in premiums for a 
                                cumulative insurance coverage of US$553million 
                                for the protection of 55million vulnerable 
                                population in participating 
                                countries.<BR> <BR><STRONG><U>About 
                                UNCCD</U></STRONG><BR>The UNCCD is an 
                                international agreement on good land 
                                stewardship. It helps people, communities and 
                                countries to create wealth, grow economies and 
                                secure enough food and water and energy, by 
                                ensuring land users have an enabling environment 
                                for sustainable land management. Through 
                                partnerships, the Convention’s 197 Parties set 
                                up robust systems to manage drought promptly and 
                                effectively. Good land stewardship based on a 
                                sound policy and science helps integrate and 
                                accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable 
                                Development Goals, builds resilience to climate 
                                change and prevents biodiversity 
                                loss.</DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--[if mso]>
                                </td>
                                <![endif]--><!--[if mso]>
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                                class=mcnImage alt="" 
                                src="https://gallery.mailchimp.com/d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42/images/989ceb7c-f00a-41f1-877d-6daffb11fb9f.jpg" 
                                width=164> </TD></TR>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; PADDING-LEFT: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 9px; FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; COLOR: #656565; FONT-SIZE: 12px; PADDING-TOP: 0px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                class=mcnTextContent vAlign=top width=164>
                                <DIV style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><SPAN 
                                style="FONT-SIZE: 12px"><SPAN 
                                style="COLOR: #006400"><STRONG><U>Contact 
                                Information</U></STRONG></SPAN></SPAN><BR>For 
                                technical information on XCF:<BR>Oluwatosin 
                                ADESIYAN, Lead Advisor, 
                                XC<BR>oluwatosin.adesiyan@wfp.org<BR> <BR>Media 
                                Inquiries about the ARC:<BR>Chinedu Moghalu, 
                                Senior Communications Specialist<BR><A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly">chinedu.moghalu@arc.int</A>; 
                                <A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly">chinedu.moghalu@wfp.org</A><BR> <BR><BR> </DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
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                                <TR>
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                                width=164> </TD></TR>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; PADDING-LEFT: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 9px; FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; COLOR: #656565; FONT-SIZE: 12px; PADDING-TOP: 0px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
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                                <DIV style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><SPAN 
                                style="FONT-SIZE: 12px"><SPAN 
                                style="COLOR: #006400"><STRONG><U>Contact 
                                Information</U></STRONG></SPAN><BR> </SPAN>For 
                                technical information about the UNCCD 
                                Contact:<BR>Ms. Camilla Nordheim-Larsen, 
                                Programme Coordinator<BR><A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly">cnordheim@unccd.int</A><BR> <BR>Media 
                                contact:<BR>Wagaki Wischnewski, Public 
                                Information and Media Officer<BR><A 
                                style="COLOR: #2baadf; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly">wwischnewski@unccd.int</A><BR><BR> <BR> </DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; TABLE-LAYOUT: fixed !important; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                class=mcnDividerBlock border=0 cellSpacing=0 
                                cellPadding=0 width="100%">
                                <TBODY class=mcnDividerBlockOuter>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; PADDING-BOTTOM: 18px; PADDING-LEFT: 18px; PADDING-RIGHT: 18px; PADDING-TOP: 18px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                class=mcnDividerBlockInner>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; BORDER-TOP: #eaeaea 2px groove; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                class=mcnDividerContent border=0 cellSpacing=0 
                                cellPadding=0 width="100%">
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly"><SPAN></SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--
                <td class="mcnDividerBlockInner" style="padding: 18px;">
                <hr class="mcnDividerContent" style="border-bottom-color:none; border-left-color:none; border-right-color:none; border-bottom-width:0; border-left-width:0; border-right-width:0; margin-top:0; margin-right:0; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:0;" />
--></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; TABLE-LAYOUT: fixed !important; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                class=mcnDividerBlock border=0 cellSpacing=0 
                                cellPadding=0 width="100%">
                                <TBODY class=mcnDividerBlockOuter>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; PADDING-BOTTOM: 18px; PADDING-LEFT: 18px; PADDING-RIGHT: 18px; PADDING-TOP: 18px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                class=mcnDividerBlockInner>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; BORDER-TOP: #eaeaea 2px solid; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                class=mcnDividerContent border=0 cellSpacing=0 
                                cellPadding=0 width="100%">
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly"><SPAN></SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--
                <td class="mcnDividerBlockInner" style="padding: 18px;">
                <hr class="mcnDividerContent" style="border-bottom-color:none; border-left-color:none; border-right-color:none; border-bottom-width:0; border-left-width:0; border-right-width:0; margin-top:0; margin-right:0; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:0;" />
--></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--[if (gte mso 9)|(IE)]></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><![endif]--></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR>
              <TR>
                <TD 
                style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; PADDING-BOTTOM: 9px; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #fafafa; BACKGROUND-REPEAT: no-repeat; BACKGROUND-POSITION: center 50%; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-TOP: #eaeaea 2px solid; PADDING-TOP: 9px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly; background-size: cover" 
                id=templateFooter vAlign=top>
                  <TABLE 
                  style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                  class=mcnBoxedTextBlock border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 
                  width="100%"><!--[if gte mso 9]>
        <table align="center" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%">
        <![endif]-->
                    <TBODY class=mcnBoxedTextBlockOuter>
                    <TR>
                      <TD 
                      style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                      class=mcnBoxedTextBlockInner vAlign=top><!--[if gte mso 9]>
                                <td align="center" valign="top" ">
                                <![endif]-->
                        <TABLE 
                        style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                        class=mcnBoxedTextContentContainer border=0 
                        cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" align=left>
                          <TBODY>
                          <TR>
                            <TD 
                            style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 9px; PADDING-LEFT: 18px; PADDING-RIGHT: 18px; PADDING-TOP: 9px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly">
                              <TABLE 
                              style="MIN-WIDTH: 100% !important; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #999999; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                              class=mcnTextContentContainer border=0 
                              cellSpacing=0 width="100%">
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; PADDING-BOTTOM: 18px; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; PADDING-LEFT: 18px; PADDING-RIGHT: 18px; FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; COLOR: #f2f2f2; FONT-SIZE: 14px; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; PADDING-TOP: 18px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                class=mcnTextContent vAlign=top>
                                <DIV><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14px"><STRONG><A 
                                style="COLOR: #656565; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                href="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=d2710e7936&e=2649914cd5" 
                                target=_blank><SPAN style="COLOR: #000000">About 
                                the UNCCD</SPAN></A></STRONG></SPAN></DIV>
                                <DIV style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">The United 
                                Nations Convention to Combat Desertification 
                                (UNCCD) is the only legally binding 
                                international agreement on land issues. The 
                                Convention promotes good land stewardship. Its 
                                197 Parties aim, through partnerships, to 
                                implement the Convention and achieve the 
                                Sustainable Development Goals. The end goal is 
                                to protect our land, from over-use and drought, 
                                so it can continue to provide us all with food, 
                                water and energy. By sustainably managing land 
                                and striving to achieve land degradation 
                                neutrality, now and in the future, we will 
                                reduce the impact of climate change, avoid 
                                conflict over natural resources and help 
                                communities to 
                              thrive.</DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--[if gte mso 9]>
                                </td>
                                <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]>
                </tr>
                </table>
                                <![endif]--></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
                  <TABLE 
                  style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                  class=mcnFollowBlock border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 
                  width="100%">
                    <TBODY class=mcnFollowBlockOuter>
                    <TR>
                      <TD 
                      style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 9px; PADDING-LEFT: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 9px; PADDING-TOP: 9px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                      class=mcnFollowBlockInner vAlign=top align=middle>
                        <TABLE 
                        style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                        class=mcnFollowContentContainer border=0 cellSpacing=0 
                        cellPadding=0 width="100%">
                          <TBODY>
                          <TR>
                            <TD 
                            style="PADDING-LEFT: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 9px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                            align=middle>
                              <TABLE 
                              style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                              class=mcnFollowContent border=0 cellSpacing=0 
                              cellPadding=0 width="100%">
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="PADDING-LEFT: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 9px; PADDING-TOP: 9px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                vAlign=top align=middle>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 
                                align=center>
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                vAlign=top align=middle><!--[if mso]>
                                    <table align="center" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
                                    <tr>
                                    <![endif]--><!--[if mso]>
                                        <td align="center" valign="top">
                                        <![endif]-->
                                <TABLE 
                                style="DISPLAY: inline; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=left>
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 10px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                class=mcnFollowContentItemContainer vAlign=top>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                class=mcnFollowContentItem border=0 
                                cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%">
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 5px; PADDING-LEFT: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 10px; PADDING-TOP: 5px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                vAlign=center align=left>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=left>
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                class=mcnFollowIconContent vAlign=center 
                                width=24 align=middle><A 
                                style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                href="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=1a17bddba2&e=2649914cd5" 
                                target=_blank><IMG 
                                style="BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; OUTLINE-STYLE: none; DISPLAY: block; -MS-INTERPOLATION-MODE: bicubic; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; HEIGHT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; TEXT-DECORATION: none" 
                                alt=Twitter 
                                src="https://cdn-images.mailchimp.com/icons/social-block-v2/color-twitter-48.png" 
                                width=24 height=24></A> 
                                </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--[if mso]>
                                        </td>
                                        <![endif]--><!--[if mso]>
                                        <td align="center" valign="top">
                                        <![endif]-->
                                <TABLE 
                                style="DISPLAY: inline; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=left>
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 10px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                class=mcnFollowContentItemContainer vAlign=top>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                class=mcnFollowContentItem border=0 
                                cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%">
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 5px; PADDING-LEFT: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 10px; PADDING-TOP: 5px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                vAlign=center align=left>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=left>
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                class=mcnFollowIconContent vAlign=center 
                                width=24 align=middle><A 
                                style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                href="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=aa07c93903&e=2649914cd5" 
                                target=_blank><IMG 
                                style="BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; OUTLINE-STYLE: none; DISPLAY: block; -MS-INTERPOLATION-MODE: bicubic; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; HEIGHT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; TEXT-DECORATION: none" 
                                alt=Facebook 
                                src="https://cdn-images.mailchimp.com/icons/social-block-v2/color-facebook-48.png" 
                                width=24 height=24></A> 
                                </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--[if mso]>
                                        </td>
                                        <![endif]--><!--[if mso]>
                                        <td align="center" valign="top">
                                        <![endif]-->
                                <TABLE 
                                style="DISPLAY: inline; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=left>
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                class=mcnFollowContentItemContainer vAlign=top>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                class=mcnFollowContentItem border=0 
                                cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%">
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 5px; PADDING-LEFT: 9px; PADDING-RIGHT: 10px; PADDING-TOP: 5px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                vAlign=center align=left>
                                <TABLE 
                                style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                                border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 align=left>
                                <TBODY>
                                <TR>
                                <TD 
                                style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                class=mcnFollowIconContent vAlign=center 
                                width=24 align=middle><A 
                                style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                                href="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=4de107709d&e=2649914cd5" 
                                target=_blank><IMG 
                                style="BORDER-RIGHT-WIDTH: 0px; OUTLINE-STYLE: none; DISPLAY: block; -MS-INTERPOLATION-MODE: bicubic; BORDER-TOP-WIDTH: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM-WIDTH: 0px; HEIGHT: auto; BORDER-LEFT-WIDTH: 0px; TEXT-DECORATION: none" 
                                alt=Website 
                                src="https://cdn-images.mailchimp.com/icons/social-block-v2/color-link-48.png" 
                                width=24 height=24></A> 
                                </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--[if mso]>
                                        </td>
                                        <![endif]--><!--[if mso]>
                                    </tr>
                                    </table>
                                    <![endif]--></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
                  <TABLE 
                  style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; TABLE-LAYOUT: fixed !important; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                  class=mcnDividerBlock border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 
                  width="100%">
                    <TBODY class=mcnDividerBlockOuter>
                    <TR>
                      <TD 
                      style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; PADDING-BOTTOM: 25px; PADDING-LEFT: 18px; PADDING-RIGHT: 18px; PADDING-TOP: 10px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                      class=mcnDividerBlockInner>
                        <TABLE 
                        style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; BORDER-TOP: #eeeeee 2px solid; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                        class=mcnDividerContent border=0 cellSpacing=0 
                        cellPadding=0 width="100%">
                          <TBODY>
                          <TR>
                            <TD 
                            style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly"><SPAN></SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--
                <td class="mcnDividerBlockInner" style="padding: 18px;">
                <hr class="mcnDividerContent" style="border-bottom-color:none; border-left-color:none; border-right-color:none; border-bottom-width:0; border-left-width:0; border-right-width:0; margin-top:0; margin-right:0; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:0;" />
--></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
                  <TABLE 
                  style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                  class=mcnTextBlock border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 
                  width="100%">
                    <TBODY class=mcnTextBlockOuter>
                    <TR>
                      <TD 
                      style="PADDING-TOP: 9px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                      class=mcnTextBlockInner vAlign=top><!--[if mso]>
                                <table align="left" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%" style="width:100%;">
                                <tr>
                                <![endif]--><!--[if mso]>
                                <td valign="top" width="600" style="width:600px;">
                                <![endif]-->
                        <TABLE 
                        style="MIN-WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; MAX-WIDTH: 100%; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt" 
                        class=mcnTextContentContainer border=0 cellSpacing=0 
                        cellPadding=0 width="100%" align=left>
                          <TBODY>
                          <TR>
                            <TD 
                            style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; PADDING-BOTTOM: 9px; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; PADDING-LEFT: 18px; PADDING-RIGHT: 18px; FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; COLOR: #656565; FONT-SIZE: 12px; PADDING-TOP: 0px; -ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; mso-line-height-rule: exactly" 
                            class=mcnTextContent vAlign=top><EM>Copyright © 
                              *|2016|* *|UNCCD|*, All rights 
                              reserved.</EM><BR>You are receiving this email 
                              because you are part of the UNCCD Secretariat 
                              mailing list<BR><BR><STRONG>Our mailing address 
                              is:</STRONG><BR>
                              <DIV class=vcard><SPAN class="org fn">United 
                              Nations Convention to Combat 
Desertification</SPAN>
                              <DIV class=adr>
                              <DIV class=street-address>UNCCD</DIV>
                              <DIV class=extended-address>Platz der Vereinten 
                              Nationen, Bonn, Germany</DIV><SPAN 
                              class=locality>Bonn</SPAN> <SPAN 
                              class=postal-code>53113</SPAN> 
                              <DIV class=country-name>Germany</DIV></DIV><BR><A 
                              class=hcard-download 
                              href="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/vcard?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=d657d34b46">Add 
                              us to your address book</A></DIV><BR><BR>
                              <DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
                              <DIV 
                              style="FONT: 10pt arial; BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black" 
                              align=left><B>From:</B> <A title=press@unccd.int 
                              href="mailto:press@unccd.int">UNCCD 
                              Secretariat</A> </DIV>
                              <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial" 
                              align=left><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, October 23, 
                              2019 5:10 PM</DIV>
                              <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial" 
                              align=left><B>Subject:</B> Africa developing new 
                              tools to build resilience to future drought 
                              shocks</DIV>
                              <DIV align=left><BR></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--[if mso]>
                                </td>
                                <![endif]--><!--[if mso]>
                                </tr>
                                </table>
                                <![endif]--></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><!--[if (gte mso 9)|(IE)]></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><![endif]--><!-- // END TEMPLATE --></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></CENTER><IMG 
src="https://unccd.us6.list-manage.com/track/open.php?u=d257fa3ad4084c603979d0e42&id=7863bf37ba&e=2649914cd5" 
width=1 height=1> </BODY></HTML>