Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification have unanimously selected Egypt to host the 18th Conference of the Parties (COP18) in 2028, Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said.
The decision was adopted during the closing session of COP17, held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from August 17 to 28, according to a ministry statement.
The ministry said Egypt’s selection followed diplomatic efforts and coordination between the Foreign Ministry and other government bodies, particularly the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, which serves as the national focal point for the convention.
Egypt has previously hosted major UN environmental conferences, including the COP27 climate summit in Sharm El-Sheikh in 2022 and the COP14 biodiversity conference in 2018.
Yasmine Fouad, Egypt’s former environment minister, has headed the UN Convention to Combat Desertification since May 2025.
The convention, one of the agreements stemming from the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro and in force since 1996, focuses on combating desertification and land degradation and mitigating the effects of drought, issues increasingly linked to water and food security, particularly in Africa.
