On December 7, "2019 Poyang Lake International Birdwatching Week" kicked off in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province of China. The 5-day birdwatching week was held in Nanchang, Jiujiang and Shangrao near Poyang Lake, with the theme of "the wetland nourishes the Province, the birds connect the world".

Poyang Lake, located in Jiangxi Province, is China's largest freshwater lake and a wetland of global significance. Every year, hundreds of thousands of migratory birds winter in Poyang Lake, including rare birds such as the critically endangered Siberian crane.

Yi Lianhong, governor of the Jiangxi Province, pointed out that Jiangxi sincerely hopes the birdwatching week would become a platform for better connecting Jiangxi with the world to build a green-developed ecological system and a beautiful home in harmony with man and nature.

Zhang Jianlong, director of the State Forestry and Grassland Administration of China, stressed that China is one of the countries with the most abundant bird resources in the world, and Poyang Lake is the most important migratory bird wintering place on the East Asia-Australia migration route. It is believed that the birdwatching week will provide Chinese experience of protecting migratory birds to the world, and promote a better harmonious symbiosis between man and nature.

Improving productivity and sustainability in agriculture, forestry and fisheries is one of the strategic goals of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Since 2014, FAO in China has designed and carried out 9 GEF projects throughout 18 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in China, covering biodiversity conservation, climate change mitigation, land degradation mitigation, sustainable management of forestry resources, wetlands protection and many other fields, with a total funding of about USD 40 million.

Among the 9 projects, the FAO and Poyang Lake National Nature Reserve Administration is jointly implementing the "FAO-GEF Piloting Provincial-level Wetland Protection Areas System in Jiangxi Province" project to protect the Poyang Lake ecosystem. Zhang Zhongjun, assistant representative of the FAO Representative Office in China, highlighted that the project is compiling Jiangxi Provincial Wetland Protected Areas Management Strategy and Jiangxi Wetland Protected Area Standards & Guidelines to offer technical guidance for management, planning, and standardized development of wetland nature reserves in Jiangxi Province. The project also adopts measures such as mainstreaming wetland conservation, capacity building, publicity and education. It is believed that this project will provide experience for wetland protection in China and even globally.

"2019 Poyang Lake International Birdwatching Week" is hosted by Jiangxi Provincial Government and China Wildlife Conservation Association, organized by Jiangxi Forestry Bureau, Jiangxi Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, Nanchang Municipal Government, Jiujiang Municipal Government and Shangrao Municipal Government, and supported by FAO, Beijing Forestry University, World Wildlife Fund, and International Crane Foundation. More than 600 participants attended the opening ceremony.