6th NENA Plenary meeting, 18 - 19 November 2020, virtual meeting Ms. Lucrezia Caon, GSP Secretariat

1. Item 1
GSP developments of
regional interest
Ms. Lucrezia Caon
NENA Soil Partnership coordinator

2. Pillar 1
Promote sustainable
management of soil resources
for soil protection,
conservation and sustainable
productivity

3. Protocol on sustainable soil management
A protocol for assessing
whether a management
practice is sustainable
according to the
definition of SSM in the
VGSSM.
The assessment is based
on the use of a set of
chemical, physical and
biological indicators.

4. Protocol on sustainable soil management
• The protocol was endorsed by a special session of the GSP
Plenary Assembly in September 2020
• The GSP is currently finalizing the Annex to the protocol on
field and laboratory soil analysis. The final document will be
published by the end of 2020
• If you have any ongoing project on sustainable soil
management that you would like to have evaluated through
the protocol, please contact Ms. Carolina Olivera at
Carolina.OliveraSanchez@fao.org.

5. Implementation of the Fertilizer Code
• Endorsed by 41st Session of FAO
Conference in 2019
• It is a response to:
(i) COAG 25 recommendation for “FAO to
intensity its food safety work and technical
support to smallholders at local level
concerning the safe use of fertilizers and
pesticides”
(ii) Sustainable Development Goals
(iii) UNEA 3 Resolution on managing soil
pollution to achieve Sustainable
Development”

6. Implementation of the Fertilizer Code
• Official launch : 19 May 2020 (webinar)
Implementation activities:
- Launch of the International Network on
Fertilizer Analysis (INFA) on 8 and 9
December 2020. INFA will operate under
the Global Soil Laboratory Network
(GLOSOLAN). Please register to the
meeting and contribute to implement
INFA activities.
- The GSP is about to send out a short
survey to prioritize the activities to
implement in each region. Please
complete the survey.

7. Pillar 2
Encourage investment,
technical cooperation, policy,
education, awareness and
extension in soil

8.  WSD map is here http://www.fao.org/world-soil-day/worldwide-events/en/
You may check the events organized by location.
Please remember to register the WSD events you are organizing on the website so
that they are advertised on the map.
 Questions of the WSD should be addressed to the World-Soil-Day mailbox
World-Soil-Day@fao.org

9. SoiLEX
The GSP newest
tool on soil
governance

10. What is SoiLEX ?
An online global database specifically on soil protection
and soil degradation prevention legal instruments.
Why SoiLEX ?
To facilitate access to information on the existing legal
instruments in force and bridge the gap between the
various soil stakeholders
Specific objectives…

11. SoiLEX objectives
Support the development of adequate soil
legislation as a contribution to sustainable soil
management;
Enhance the capacity of national, regional, local
authorities and other stakeholders in soil legislation;
Develop new knowledge, documenting existing
good practices, identifying and adapting tools in
relevance to soil threats;
Empower civil society by giving them access to
legislative materials

12. SoiLEX will be ready in December 2020
In January 2021, the GSP is planning to
have a webinar for its official launch

13. However, you can still contribute
to it…
 Respond to the questionnaire on national soil legislations
http://www.fao.org/global-soil-partnership/resources/highlights/detail/en/c/1274929/
 Support the update and growth of SoiLEX;
 Promote this tool at the country-level.
 Join the working group on SoiLEX (concept note and preliminary
work plan sent by email).
Please note that the working group is mainly composed by experts
in legislation (not soil scientists). Please feel free to share this
information with those experts in soil legislation that might be
interested to join the working group.

14. http://www.fao.org/global-soil-partnership/pillars-action/2-awareness-raising/soil-
doctor/en/
Implementation of the Global Soil Doctors Programme
• Programme launched on 5 October 2020
• A farmer-to-farmer training initiative to be
implemented by local promoters, with the GSP
support, on a volunteer basis
• Interested farmers in the community will receive
general training – the Soil Doctors selected will
receive a higher-level training
• The Soil Doctors are provided with a toolbox:
- Implementation manual
- A soil testing methods manual
- Educational material

15. Implementation of the Global Soil Doctors Programme
• The GSP is currently:
- testing soil testing kits to give to the Soil
Doctors
- Implementing the programme in a few pilot
countries
The GSP is preparing a short survey to collect the
names of those interested to implement the
programme. The survey will be sent to all national
focal points by the end of November.
All those completing the survey will be contacted
by the GSP for developing a country specific
implementation plan of the programme
For more information on the programme and for contributing to it, please contact
Ms. Carolina Olivera at Carolina.OliveraSanchez@fao.org

16. Pillar 3
Promote targeted soil research and
development focusing on identified
gaps, priorities and synergies with
related productive, environmental
and social development actions

17. International Network on
Salt-affected Soils
(INSAS)

18. Launched in November 2019, during the Global Forum on
Innovations for Marginal Environments, organized by the
International Center for Biosaline Agriculture’s (ICBA) -
Dubai, UAE
Why ? To join efforts to face the challenge of sustainably
manage salt-affected soils especially in NENA and
Eurasian countries
Specific objectives :
1. To provide a platform for countries with salt-affected soils to discuss
common issues related to the conservation and sustainable
management of salt-affected soils
2. To foster collaboration among these countries towards promoting the
sustainable use and management of salt-affected soils and identify
relevant research gaps
3. To serve as a platform for knowledge sharing and technical
cooperation on salt-affected soils management

19. Work plan and way forward
Organization of the first INSAS meeting
in January – February 2021 to define its
work plan and governance. Additional
information on the meeting will be sent
to all national focal points soon.
If not done yet, all countries and
organizations willing to join and
contribute to the work of INSAS should
send an email to Mr. Filippo Benedetti
(Filippo.Benedetti@fao.org)

20. Although a clear work plan is still to be
developed, some activities are already
ongoing. These refer to :
• The development of the Global Soil
Salinity Map (to be launched in 2021)
• The writing of the Global status of salt-
affected soils (to be published in 2021)
• The organization of the Global
symposium on salt-affected soils
(September 2021, Uzbekistan)
Work plan and way forward

21. Soil Atlas of Asia
• Start of this activity : March 2018
• Expected publication date : December 2021
• Only countries in the Near East are involved in this work

22. Soil Atlas of Asia
Actions to take
• Please nominate your experts in the Editorial Board
• Please review your country profiles

23. Soil Atlas of Asia
Fourth Editorial Board meeting
24 November 2020 | Countries in the Asian Soil Partnership
from 7 to 11AM CET (Rome time)
25 November 2020 | Countries in the European Soil Partnership
from 9AM to 1PM CET (Rome time)
26 November 2020 | Countries in the Near East
from 9AM to 1PM CET (Rome time)
27 November 2020 | Plenary session
from 8 to 10AM CET (Rome time)

24. Pillar 4
Information and Data

25. GSOCmap V1.0 (2017) … V1.5 (2019) …V.1.6 (2020)
GSSmap
GSOCseq
GBSmap
GSERmap
Country Driven Global Datasets
Kick-off 25%
50% 75%
100%
V1.0 (Q2 2021)
V1.0 (Q1 2021)
V1.0 (Q1 2021)
V1.0 (Q4 2021)

26. GSSmap – Global Soil Salinity Map
•Guidelines and Technical Specifications
•Technical Manual and training materials
•Capacity development
•National mapping
•Compilation of the final map
•GSSmap Technical report
•Report on the global status of salt-
affected soils
In progress
Done
Done
Done
Pending
In progress
Pending

27. • Training on digital soil salinity mapping organized on
December 2019, Tunis, Tunisia
• Countries that did not participate to the training on digital
soil salinity mapping (Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, Qatar,
Kuwait and United Arab Emirates) are invited to contact
the Mr. Christian Omuto (Christian.Omuto@fao.org). The
GSP can organize a special training session for them and
for all countries that still have to submit their map as
needed.
• Please submit your national soil salinity map AS SOON AS
POSSIBLE (the deadline was end of August 2020)
GSSmap – Global Soil Salinity Map

28. GSS Map – status of submission of national maps

29. • All countries : please send your book chapter for the
Global Status of Salt-Affected Soils by 15 December.
Please note that we extended we original deadline. Please
note that each country has a chapter assigned and that the
book will be published together with the GSS map.
Please send your contribution to Mr. Filippo Benedetti
(Filippo.Benedetti@fao.org) and to Mr. Christian Omuto
(Christian.Omuto@fao.org)
Please note that we are looking for a consultant to help with
activities on salt-affected soils. Applications should be sent to
Ronald.Vargas@fao.org
Actions to take…

30. GSOCmap V1.0 (2017) … V1.5 (2019) …V.1.6 (2020)
GSSmap
GSOCseq
GBSmap
GSERmap
Country Driven Global Datasets
Kick-off 25%
50% 75%
100%
V1.0 (Q2 2021)
V1.0 (Q1 2021)
V1.0 (Q1 2021)
V1.0 (Q4 2021)

31. GSOCseq - Global Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration
Potential Map
As per the preparation of other global maps, the entire process is
country-driven, continuous, participatory, based on and guided by the
best available science, rigorous collection and analysis of appropriate
data, and consideration of experiences and good practices within, and
outside, countries.
Why a GSOCseq map ?
To fill a big gap, simulate soil organic carbon stocks over a 20–year period in
agricultural lands and quantify the soil organic carbon sequestration
potential under different sustainable soil management and business as usual
(BAU) scenarios at national scale. This will eventually give us a global
perspective and understanding of critical role of soils in major global issues.

32. Planning
Feasibility, Methodologies, Technical
Specifications and Country Guidelines,
Reviewing, INSII/NFP Expert nomination
2019-
2020
Technical Development
Cookbook (Technical Manual), Modelling
Environment, Script, Training Materials
Q1-Q4
2020
GSOCseq V1.0Q1
2021
Capacity Development &
Production
Regional Training Sessions. Technical
Manual
Q4
2020
GSOCseq Development Process
Technical specifications and country guidelines for
Global Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration Potential
Map was developed through an extensive research
and consultation process, involving scientists, policy
makers, FAO members, and international and
intergovernmental panels, providing a background,
product specifications and deliverables.

33. ➔Product Specifications
➔Procedures
➔Data requirements
➔Data Sources
➔Quality Assurance/Quality
Check
➔Data Policy
➔Delivery Process
http://www.fao.org/documents/card/en/c/cb0353en/

34. GSOCseq Development Process
5 days
(Training)
MODULE I
Hands-on practice with a
training dataset
● Day 1 - Introduction: General framework (BAU, SSM1-SSM2-SSM3), Product
specifications,
● Day 2 - Introduction to sequestration modelling (RothC Basics), Input data
requirements, uncertainties, software and tools
● Day 3 - Introduction to R and start running the script (Scripts 0 to 5)
● Day 4 - Scripts 6-9
● Day 5 - Review and interpretation of the results and QA, Preparation instructions
for the next session
5 days
(Production)
MODULE II
National GSOCseq
Development using
national data
● Day 1 - National Input Data
● Day 2 - Running the script from 0 - 7
● Day 3 - Running the script from 8-9
● Day 4 - Running the script from 8-9
● Day 5 - Writing rasters, packing, submission procedure etc
2 MODULES | 30 COURSE HOURS |8 REGIONS
Capacity Development &
Production
Regional Training Sessions. Technical
Manual
Q4
2020

35. Actions to take…
• Please nominate your expert to work on the GSOCseq map. At
present, we still miss the nominees from :
All countries should submit the name of their expert to work on
this assignment at the following link
https://forms.gle/u3EuzDWvtnbc2VLp9
Algeria
Egypt
Iran
Iraq
Kuwait
Libya
Oman
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
United Arab
Emirates
Yemen

37. Actions to take…
• GSOCseq Training: Module I for the Near East and North Africa
(NENA) - Scheduled to be on 7-11 December 2020. All
nominated experts will receive an email with all required
information and training material.

38. International Network of Soil Information Institutions
(INSII)
INSII is composed by nationally mandated institutions and GSP partners
developing the Global Soil Information System (GLOSIS).
These institutions are also active members of the Regional Soil Partnerships.
INSII members are the main implementing institutions of the Pillar 4
Implementation plan.
These institutions have the technical ability to develop and share selected
national soil information and data. All institutions, whether sub-national or
national, regional or global, can join the INSII network for collecting and
distributing information on the status of the soil resource.
For more information contact Yusuf.Yigini@fao.org

39. International Network of Soil Information Institutions
(INSII)
Countries that still have to nominate their experts in INSII :
• Egypt
• Kuwait
• Libya
• Qatar
• Saudi Arabia
• United Arab Emirates
National focal points are kindly asked to nominate their experts to serve in
INSII at the following link: https://forms.gle/u3EuzDWvtnbc2VLp9

40. Pillar 5
Harmonization of methods,
measurements and indicator
for the sustainable
management and protection
of soil resources

41. Established in November 2017 to build and strengthen the
capacity of laboratories in soil analysis and to respond to the
need for harmonizing soil analytical methods and data.
http://www.fao.org/global-soil-partnership/glosolan/en/

42. For the harmonization of soil laboratory methods and data, and for building
the capacity of laboratories in soil analysis. Four major areas of work:
- Execution of external quality control (proficiency testing)
- Training on the execution of internal quality control
- Harmonization of Standard Operation Procedures (SOPs)
- Training on the implementation of GLOSOLAN SOPs
- Training on safety and health
- Training on equipment use, maintenance and
purchasing
- Establishment of a donation/bartering system
- Spectroscopy
- Harmonization of fertilizers quality
assessment procedures

43. Africa
AFRILAB
Asia
SEALNET
Europe &
Eurasia
EUROSOLAN
Latin
America
LATSOLAN
Near East &
North Africa
NENALAB
North
America
Pacific
ASPAC
121 94 122 151 61 6 16
At present, GLOSOLAN counts almost 600 registered laboratories
 Established in June 2020
 Governance 2020-2022 :
• Chair: Mr. Abdelmjid Zouahri (Morocco)
• Vice-Chair for the Near East: Mr. Alaa Khallouf (Syria)
• Vice-Chair for North Africa: Ms. Hana Nabil (Morocco)

44. National Soil Laboratory Networks (NASOLANs)
GLOBAL
REGIONAL
NATIONAL
How does GLOSOLAN work?
The national focal point to the Global Soil Partnership nominate a laboratory
to serve as National Reference Laboratory (NRL).
The NRL is tasked to establish the NASOLAN for its country.

45. Actions to take…
• Please spread the voice on GLOSOLAN and NENALAB. Motivate
laboratories to register to the network by sending an email to the
GLOSOLAN Coordinator (lucrezia.caon@fao.org)
• Countries in NENA that still miss a National Reference Laboratory are:
 UAE
 Egypt
 Kuwait
 Libya
 Qatar
National focal points from these countries to please identify their
National Reference Laboratory (1 per country)

46. Actions to take…
National Reference
Laboratories should be
identified based on the
criteria in the Terms of
Reference available at
http://www.fao.org/3/ca
7509en/ca7509en.pdf

47. Actions to take…
• Please politically and if possible financially support the
laboratories registered in GLOSOLAN from your country
and your National Reference Laboratory especially.
National Reference Laboratories are now working on the
establishment of their National Soil Laboratory Networks
(NASOLAN). They need all the support you can give them

48. Thanks for
your attention