From September 17 to 19, the 4th China-ASEAN Meteorological Cooperation Forum kicked off in Nanning, Guangxi, themed “Digital Intelligence Empowers Meteorological Cooperation, Early Warnings Benefit People’s Livelihood”.

Decision-makers, experts, and scholars from meteorological and hydrological departments of China and ASEAN countries such as Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, and Indonesia, as well as from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), universities, enterprises, and research institutions, gathered to discuss regional meteorological cooperation and development.

On behalf of Dr. Chen Zhenlin, Administrator of the China Meteorological Administration (CMA), Dr. CAO Xiaozhong, Deputy Administrator of CMA, delivered an opening address. Mrs. Sui Guohua, Vice Chairwoman of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Mr. Ben Churchill, Director of WMO Regional Office for Asia and the South-West Pacific (RAP), Mrs. Rokiah Haji Angas, Director of Brunei Meteorological Department, Mr. Nguyen Thuong Hien, Administrator of the Vietnam Meteorological and Hydrological Administration (VNMHA), Mr. Virasack Chundara, Director of the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology (DMH) of Lao PDR and Mrs. Seth Vannareth, Permanent Representative of Cambodia with WMO also attended the Forum.

CAO Xiaozhong stressed that China is willing to continue to support United Nations’ (UN) Early Warnings for All (EW4All) initiative, within the framework of MAZU, a Joint Action for Early Warnings for All, enhancing collaboration with ASEAN countries in AI technology application, capacity building, standard alignment, and professional exchanges to improve regional capabilities in early warning and disaster prevention.

SUI Guohua expressed Guangxi’s willingness to strengthen platforms such as the China-ASEAN Expo and the Forum to boost scientific innovation and cultural exchange in meteorology.

Ben Churchill recognized China’s efforts in sharing expertise and technological achievements through MAZU and encouraged deeper cooperation to build a safer and more resilient future.

Rokiah Haji Angas acknowledged the Forum’s efforts in mitigating disaster risks and urged closer collaboration to advance Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications in meteorology and close the early warning gaps together.

During the opening ceremony of the Forum, the Action Initiative on Joint Innovation for Meteorological Artificial Intelligence (AI) Model Applications launched for the first time. The Initiative focuses on Empowering Meteorology with AI, Empowering Industries with Meteorological Intelligence.

Lanuch of the Action Initiative on Joint Innovation for Meteorological Artificial Intelligence (AI) Model Applications Photoed by WEI Jian

Under the framework of MAZU, the Initiative proposes four pillars for action to enhance public well-being and drive sustainable regional development: Joint Innovation, to jointly build, optimize, and apply a suite of AI weather forecasting models precisely tailored to region's needs, thereby enhancing the collective capabilities in forecasting and warning for high-impact weather such as typhoons and severe convection; Data Fusion, to jointly build and enrich a high-quality, high-resolution regional meteorological dataset to serve as the essential foundation for AI model training and optimization; Joint Talent Development, to cultivate a community of experts capable of leading regional advancements in meteorological AI, ensuring the sustainable development of regional cooperation together; Building a Common Home, to establish a robust support system to ensure the effective and long-term implementation of this initiative.

During the Forum, the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) also released the “CMA Global Climate Dataset”, marking the first time that China's climate data products made available for international sharing. The Datasets encompass 6 categories of data, namely Global Surface Dataset, Global Radiosonde Dataset, Global Merged Surface Temperature, CMA ReAnalysis V1.5, FENGYUN (FY) Satellites Land & Radiation Dataset, and FY Satellites Ocean Dataset.

Catalogue of CMA Global Climate Datasets

An AI-empowered Meteorology Exhibition titled “Smart Meteorology, Connecting ASEAN AI Powered New Ecosystem for Regional Disaster Prevention and Mitigation” also held during the 22nd China-ASEAN Expo.

The Exhibition Photoed by JIANG Zhiqing

Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Meteorological Service introduced two innovative AI-powered service scenarios in the Exhibition: One is “Yuheng”, an AI model for energy meteorological prediction designed to improve the accuracy of wind and solar power forecasts in complex terrains, another is the ASEAN agricultural meteorological service system that provides disaster warnings and 18 types of services for crops such as sugarcane and rice, including drought, rainstorm, waterlogging, and soil moisture monitoring.

The Forum was organized by Guangxi Meteorological Service, CMA International Cooperation and Training Centre, and the Chinese Meteorological Society, with support from the Department of Ecology and Environment, Department of Commerce, and Big Data Development Bureau of Guangxi.

Editor: JIANG Zhiqing, WANG Chang