Combating desertification in central Asia: finding new ways to regional stability through environmental sustainability?

This article appraises the Central Asian Countries' Initiative on Land Management (CACILM) as an innovative experience of regional cooperation to implement the Convention on Desertification. Despite high initial expectations, the actual implementation process has suffered drawbacks. The Central Asian countries' commitment and capacity to sustain this process depends heavily on international support. Moreover, the process' low political profile and the weak capacities of the Central Asian authorities to engage in meaningful transnational cooperation are significant hurdles to be tackled. At the same time, national and regional efforts to combat soil degradation and desertification have not yet been properly mainstreamed with other more consolidated processes for the sustainable management of natural resources, such as the IFAS. It is argued that this may be a possible solution for the future of CACILM.