The royal commission for alula: has concluded its participation in the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17), which took place in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from August 17 to 28, 2026.

According to Saudi Press Agency, RCU participated as part of the Saudi Pavilion, led by the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, contributing to four sessions focused on integrated ecosystem restoration, applied ecological restoration research, long-term ecosystem stewardship, and land degradation neutrality in arid environments.

RCU's participation built on the Kingdom's wider land restoration efforts under the Saudi Green Initiative and supported the environmental ambitions of Saudi Vision 2030. In early 2026, Saudi Arabia announced the restoration of its first one million hectares of land affected by desertification and the planting of more than 159 million trees, reflecting the collective efforts of government entities, the private sector and communities across the Kingdom.

RCU's ecological restoration programs in AlUla contribute to these national efforts through habitat restoration, native plant propagation, protected-area management, applied research, and ecological monitoring. In Sharaan National Park, RCU has restored more than 74,400 hectares and planted more than 530,000 native seedlings representing approximately 60 species, supporting vegetation recovery and strengthening ecosystem resilience. Vegetation recovery in the park increased from approximately 6% in 2018 to 50% by mid-2026.

The National Greening Program also issued RCU a certificate documenting the completion of rehabilitation works in the park, following verification against approved rehabilitation standards undertaken with technical support from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The certificate provides formal national confirmation that the documented works met the approved rehabilitation standards.

RCU is implementing a 10-year Ecosystem Restoration Strategy in AlUla, centered on native plant production through the Seed Bank and AlUla Nursery, environmental baselines, scientific monitoring, protected-area management, and local and international partnerships. Together, these efforts provide a foundation for scaling restoration and advancing the exchange of knowledge and expertise in arid-land restoration.