Photo shows giant panda Tian Bao in February 2022.Photo:Xinhua

Tian Bao, the very first giant panda born in 2016 in Belgium, will be able to stay at the Pairi Daiza zoo in Belgium in 2022, according to a press release published by the zoo on Thursday.

"Pairi Daiza has reached an agreement with the China Wildlife Conservation Association (CWCA) allowing the eldest of the giant pandas born in Belgium to stay in 2022 in the zoo, " said the statement.

The two sides will also initiate the necessary arrangements for transporting Tian Bao to China this year, the statement continued.

Photo shows giant panda Tian Bao in June 2016.Photo:Xinhua

Panda twins Bao Di and Bao Mei, born in 2019 to Hao Hao and Xing Hui, the parents of Tian Bao, will settle together in a new territory that will be expressly built for them.

The separation of the twins and the panda mother should make it possible to relaunch procreation attempts as part of the conservation program for this vulnerable species, according to the same source.

Xing Hui and Hao Hao arrived in Belgium in 2014 on loan from China.

Photo shows giant panda Tian Bao in October 2021.Photo:Xinhua

 
The convention that governs the presence of pandas in Belgium provides that all the couple's children must be sent back to China at the age of four in order to better safeguard the species of giant pandas.

The process of returning Tian Bao to China has been delayed by the COVID-19 restrictions. Pairi Daiza has thus become one of the rare animal zoos outside of China that has five giant pandas at the same time.