UN General Assembly
2007

the Niger to that friendly country, the entire Islamic ummah and all other partners who kindly supported that initiative. The international community should pay particular attention to one category of countries that is even more vulnerable. I am referring to land-locked developing countries, whose geography puts them at a great disadvantage. In 2003, the Almaty Conference, having considered their situation, adopted a Declaration and Programme of Action, the implementation of which is soon to be reviewed. The time has therefore come to launch an urgent appeal to all development partners to resolve to take the necessary measures not only to help those countries to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, but also to enable them to mitigate the negative impacts of desertification, environmental degradation and climate change. Desertification and the deteriorating environment are two problems that seriously affect the countries of the Sahel, including mine. The combined efforts of the international community effectively to combat those scourges should be stepped up. The action taken by the Niger, based on the experience gained through the