Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Due to land degradation and climate change, drought is worsening faster and more intensely, 29% more than in 2000, and affects 55 million people annually, the head of the information service of the State Forestry Committee, Otabek Ashurov, said.

Drought is predicted to affect three-quarters of the world's population by 2050.

Due to the drying of the Aral Sea in Uzbekistan, Aralkum was formed on an area of more than 3 million hectares.

As a result of desertification, the yield of agricultural crops grown in the Republic of Karakalpakstan, Bukhara, Navoi and Khorezm regions has decreased by almost 40-45%.