China establishes national giant panda conservation, research center

BEIJING, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- The national giant panda conservation and research center, a world-class platform for giant panda research cooperation and exchange, was inaugurated Friday in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province, southwest China.

The center integrates the resources of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda and the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, gathering outstanding giant panda research teams from across the country.

According to the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, the center has established a giant panda conservation academic committee and a national innovation alliance. Looking ahead, the center will build a key giant panda laboratory and promote the establishment of similar laboratories for other endangered animals.

The National Forestry and Grassland Administration, the Sichuan provincial forestry and grassland administration and the Chengdu municipal government have jointly allocated a starting capital of 110 million yuan (15.2 million U.S. dollars) for the giant panda conservation and research fund.

Two major research projects on key technologies have been initiated, namely, to protect the wild giant panda population and habitat in national parks, and to improve the genetic diversity of the captive giant panda population.

An international forum on giant panda protection will also be held by the center every two years, along with various research cooperation and cultural exchange activities.

Also on Friday, an official with the administration said China will roll out a raft of measures to better protect the giant panda population.

The country will improve conditions and technologies for the artificial breeding of giant pandas, and ensure the sustainable development of the giant panda populations that are in captive breeding, said the official at a seminar in Chengdu.

To expand wild panda populations, the country will redouble efforts to restore its giant panda habitats and construct ecological corridors for the speedy resolution of problems like habitat fragmentation and isolation of regional populations.

A panoramic, technologically advanced and effective monitoring system will be established in the Giant Panda National Park to cover both wild panda populations and those in the captive breeding program. The park stretches across Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces and protects more than 70 percent of China's wild pandas.

Annual on-site assessments will be carried out to guarantee the safety and health of giant pandas sojourning overseas, and their return to China should be managed well, the administration said.