“Digital Silk Road” proposed by China

BEIJING:

At an international symposium on Earth observation for the Belt and Road, the "Digital Silk Road" proposal was put forward.

China proposes international scientific cooperation programme for Earth observation to provide digital backing to Beijing's mega Silk Road Project.

The Belt and Road Initiative will be benefitted by the "digital Silk Road" as it will hopefully add on to statistics and environmental information for and support decision making.

Space-based Earth observation technology will help enhance people's understanding of the Belt and Road in a faster, broader and more accurate way, says Guo Huadong, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

The symposium was being attended by over 300 Earth observation scholars and experts from more than 40 countries and regions along the Belt and Road, as well as international organisations like UNESCO.

State-run Xinhua news agency reports, academicians expressed hope that the Earth observation technology may be used to promote research on natural resources. This is being proposed for other countries along the Belt and Road, paving the way for more bilateral and multilateral cooperation.

The programme will be scientific, open and cooperative and will welcome more countries, organisations and scholars to participate, Mr Guo said.