The Ninth Kubuqi International Desert Forum kicks off in Ordos in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region on Aug 26. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

The Ninth Kubuqi International Desert Forum kicked off in the Kubuqi Desert Elion Ecological Demonstration Zone in the city of Ordos in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region on Aug 26.

The forum, entitled "Technology-Empowered Desert Control for the Benefit of Mankind", has seen the participation of more than 300 political and business figures, experts, and scholars from over 20 countries.

This year's forum will last for two days and feature four themed forums on desert biodiversity conservation and sustainable resource utilization, sandstorm prevention and scientific desertification control, integrated management of mountains, waters, forests, farmlands, lakes, grasses, and sand, as well as promoting land restoration through knowledge and technology.

By sharing and exchanging the latest achievements in global desertification control technologies and models, the forum aims to promote technological innovation that contributes to desertification control and advance the achievement of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

During the opening ceremony, the National Forestry and Grassland Administration and the Secretariat of the League of Arab States signed the Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of the China-Arab International Research Center for Drought, Desertification and Land Degradation.

The forum sees the attendance of more than 300 political and business figures, experts, and scholars from over 20 countries. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

Meanwhile, the China-Arab International Research Center for Drought, Desertification, and Land Degradation was inaugurated. Thereafter, the first batch of cooperative projects, related to planting 10 billion trees across Saudi Arabia and a desert control project combining desert photovoltaic and ecological planting, was launched.

Founded in 2007, the Kubuqi International Desert Forum is held every two years and is the only large-scale international forum dedicated to promoting global desertification control and green economic development.

Located in Ordos, Inner Mongolia, the Kubuqi Desert is the seventh-largest desert in China, with a total area of over 18,600 square kilometers. It was once known as the "Sea of Death".

After more than 30 years of control efforts, one-third of the Kubuqi Desert has been transformed into an oasis, making it the only desert in the world to be comprehensively treated. The Kubuqi Desert control model has been hailed by the United Nations as a "global desert control sample".

This year's forum is co-hosted by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Regional People's Government; and has invited the United Nations Environment Programme and the Secretariat of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification as co-organizers.

The National Forestry and Grassland Administration and the Secretariat of the League of Arab States sign the Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of the China-Arab International Research Center for Drought, Desertification and Land Degradation. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]