The Arab Organization for Agricultural Development (AOAD) held the 8th meeting with the Arab delegations during the 14th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, on Monday the 26th of November 2018, in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, with the participation of the Arab delegations.

AOAD representative started the meeting with a presentation on the previous day outcomes, as well as the proposed points for discussion with the Executive Secretary of the Convention.

Dr. Hamdallah Zaidan, the former Executive Secretary of the Convention, congratulated the Arab countries on their efforts to coordinate their activities during the conferences of the parties and thanked AOAD for its initiatives in this area. Dr Zaidan mentioned the importance of recognizing the stocks of biodiversity available in the Arab countries and to benefit from the great wealth. Finally, Dr. Zaidan discussed the traditional Arab knowledge in the fields of preventing land degradation and the loss of biodiversity which has not yet been sufficiently defined.