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Fighting Desertification in People's Republic of China

MANILA, PHILIPPINES (1 August 2001) - The Asian Development Bank has agreed to provide a US$610,000 technical assistance to combat desertification in the People's Republic of China's western region, particularly Gansu Province. The assistance will help the Gansu provincial government develop an integrated approach to control and prevent further desertification, and enhance oasis ecosystems, in the Hexi Corridor.

Desertification is a significant cause of environmental deterioration in the western region. It erodes stabilizing vegetation cover and nutrients, and destroys the soil's structure and moisture-holding capacity. Desertification encroaches on arable land, reduces soil productivity, reduces biological resources, and increases the rate of sandstorms and downstream flooding and erosion. It is, in short, a major cause of rural poverty. The PRC has 260 million hectares of desertified land, or one quarter of its land area. Almost 90 percent of the rural poor live in areas suffering from soil erosion.

The assistance, to be financed by ADB's Japan Special Fund, will include surveys of river basins containing oases under threat of desertification. The project will examine the impact of development policies and approaches to natural resources management, and will consult stakeholders, including affected communities, to derive policy recommendations. The assistance will include proposals to increase community participation in resource management and to formulate ways of providing basic services and income for people whose livelihoods may be affected by changes in land-use policies.

The total cost of the technical assistance is US$765,000. The Gansu provincial government will fund the balance. The project is scheduled for completion by February 2002.

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