Desertification, which largely contributes to sandstorms, is a global issue that threatens about 67 percent of the world's countries and regions. International collaboration is urgently needed to solve the problem, experts at the forum said.
At the event, China's National Forestry and Grassland Administration and the Secretariat of the League of Arab States signed a memorandum of understanding on the establishment of the center. The two sides launched the first batch of collaboration projects, including a plan to plant 10 billion trees across Saudi Arabia and an eco-solar desert control engineering project.
The signing of the agreement fulfilled a commitment between China and the Middle Eastern countries made in December, when China proposed building the center at the First China-Arab States Summit held in Riyadh, capital of Saudi Arabia.
Wan Gang, chairman of the China Association for Science and Technology, said at the forum that more global consensus is needed on preventing and controlling desertification.
Desertification affects about 33 percent of the Earth's land area and poses severe challenges to the survival and development of 20 percent of the world's population, Wan said.
"It is urgent to control desertification through joint efforts by countries and regions, and it has been proved that deserts are not forbidden areas for life. They can be managed and transformed into valuable resources for sustainable human development," he said.