China has provided equipment of early warning system to Gwadar port to help mitigate detrimental impacts of natural disasters like catastrophic flood, torrential rain as well as metrological hazards.
The equipment doled out by China Meteorological Administration (CMA) to Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), includes the establishment of one mobile vertical observation system, one Beidou Navigation sounding station and three automatic weather stations (AWS) including two backup Aws and large screen. After equipment’s installation and functioning at Gwadar Port, next beneficiary areas are Jiwani and Turbat in Balochistan, as per Chinese media.
The collaboration between CMA and PMD is a part of boosting China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) capacity for emergency management of major metrological disasters under the Belt and Road Initiative.
China Meteorological Administration is also assisting PMD for enhancing its institutional capabilities to meet the emerging hydro-meteorological challenges.
For site-selection, transportation, installation, commissioning, daily operation and maintenance, PMD has constituted a three-member team which will coordinate with the counterpart CMA. Last year, on March 24, meteorological officers and experts from China and Pakistan held talks on deepening cooperation in meteorological science and technology in Beijing.
During its visit to the Chinese capital, the Pakistani delegation also visited relevant agencies under CMA to learn about the progress of the cloud-based early warning support system in Pakistan and discussed customized plans for Pakistan.
The PMD and CMA will strengthen cooperation in monitoring, forecasting, hydrology and communication, and research and training. China and Pakistan are important members of World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Regional Association II. The bilateral cooperation between the two countries is of vital significance for meteorological development in Asia.