AIR Hosts On-the-job Training for Kyrgyzstan on Pilot Central Asia Drought Information System
May 28, 2024
Aiming to fortify regional resilience against drought, the Aerospace Information Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (AIRCAS) orchestrated an immersive on-the-job training workshop in Beijing from May 6 to 10. The workshop, centered on the Pilot Central Asia Drought Information System, drew participation from five experts representing the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Kyrgyz Republic (MES).
This workshop sought to empower Kyrgyzstan's stakeholders with the requisite skills and knowledge to effectively utilize the Drought Information System which assumes a pivotal role in bolstering early warning mechanisms and enabling timely response strategies.
The DroughtWatch system, which is developed by AIR scientists, has garnered success in various Central Asian and Southeast Asian nations like Mongolia, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka. Collaborating with Kyrgyzstan promises to advance drought monitoring technology in Central Asia, thereby furnishing robust support for local agriculture and water resources management.
In thematic presentations, Prof. LI Suju expounded upon China's emergency satellites and their multifaceted applications across disaster prevention domains. Prof. WU Bingfang elucidated on big data's role in supporting resilient agriculture, while Dr. Nana Yan showcased the application of the DroughtWatch and DzudWatch systems in Mongolia.
The MES experts exhibited keen interest in China's satellite and remote sensing technology applications, engaging in substantive discussions on data acquisition, processing, analysis, and their potential application in agricultural disaster prevention within Kyrgyzstan. Both parties concurred on the vast potential of remote sensing technology in Kyrgyzstan's agricultural landscape and expressed eagerness to deepen cooperation for mutual benefit and the sustainable development of agriculture in Central Asia.
Spanning five days, the training comprised lectures by Dr. YAN Nana, Dr. LI Rui, and Dr. MA Zonghan from AIRCAS, comprising topics such as drought remote sensing monitoring technology, prediction techniques, remote sensing data processing, and operational aspects of the DroughtWatch software in Kyrgyzstan. The objective was to comprehensively enhance participants' proficiency in autonomously conducting drought monitoring via remote sensing technology.
Moving forward, AIRCAS will continue to collaborate with relevant organizations across Central Asian countries like Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. These collaborative efforts, within the framework of United Nations regional cooperation, aim to proliferate the application of space technology for fostering regional sustainable development.
The training workshop was organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and hosted by the Ecosystem Remote Sensing Laboratory under the State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science of AIR.
Group photo of the opening meeting.
A scene of the training.
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