Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, within the framework of COP17, called on the five Caspian states and the international community to join forces to protect rare animals. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Sputnik Kazakhstan.
The president expressed concern over the declining number of the Caspian seal. According to him, over the past century the Caspian seal population has declined from 1 million to 270 thousand.
"We must not let the Caspian Sea repeat the fate of the Aral," said Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
In this regard, he called on the five Caspian states and the international community to join forces to protect rare animals.
The president also presented an initiative to create an International Fund for the Protection of Rare Species and Conservation of Biodiversity and urged foreign partners to participate in this project.
In addition, he said that a national program for the conservation of biodiversity is being developed in Kazakhstan and work has begun on creating a National Genetic Biodiversity Bank.
The head of state noted the need for coordinated work at the international level to strengthen water security. According to him, Kazakhstan has proposed creating an International Water Organization within the UN system.
"Our goal is to strengthen water security and protect natural ecosystems that depend on the state of rivers, lakes and wetlands," said the president.
At the same time, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev proposed the widespread use of digital technologies and artificial intelligence for biodiversity conservation. In his opinion, these tools make it possible to monitor ecosystems, effectively manage natural resources and predict environmental threats in advance.
In this regard, the president proposed using the Alem.AI international artificial intelligence center in Astana to analyze biodiversity data, conduct scientific research and train industry specialists.