Q: What initiative, spanning eleven nations across East and West Africa, is addressing land degradation, climate change, forestry, and biodiversity? 

A: The Great Green Wall
The Great Green Wall initiative was developed to increase the amount of arable land in the Sahel. Once rich in vegetation and biodiversity, scientists are working to combat land degradation and restore native plant life to the region. The eleven countries that have joined the initiative are Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, Chad, Niger, Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and Senegal. While the original project was to be concentrated in a stretch of land about 4,831 miles (7,775 km) long and only 9 miles (15 km) wide from Djibouti to Dakar, Senegal, the project expanded to include countries in both northern and western Africa. The initiative applies an integrated landscape approach, so countries can address the environmental issues within a local context, while benefiting the environmental locally and globally. The hope is that the region will possess a mosaic of landscapes that increases biodiversity, while supporting each country's individual goals. While planting a belt of trees across the continent is one focus of the Great Green Wall initiative, the project is much more extensive, focusing on improving soil fertility, increasing crop yields, diversifying income, and more. The project has received a $2 billion budget, financed largely by the World Bank and partnerships fostered by the African Union. While the project focuses on environmental benefits, land quality improvement and economic opportunity could potentially curb terrorism, famine, and poverty. 

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