New Delhi [India], May 11 (ANI): Saudi Arabia is set to join the India-led International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA), becoming its 26th member country, according to sources in India's Environment Ministry.

Sources said that communication has been received from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia expressing its intention to formally join the alliance.

The International Big Cat Alliance was launched by India as a global initiative focused on the conservation and protection of big cats and their habitats across the world.

The alliance currently has 25 signatory countries and five observer nations.

Saudi Arabia's proposed entry is expected to further strengthen international cooperation on wildlife conservation, biodiversity protection and sustainable ecosystem management under the IBCA framework.

The alliance brings together a range of nations to protect seven major big cat species, which are the tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, jaguar, and puma.

As of May, the 25 member countries of the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) include India, Angola, Armenia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Egypt, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Paraguay, Russia, Rwanda, Somalia, and Sri Lanka.

The five countries recognised with observer status within the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) are Kazakhstan, Namibia, Thailand, Ecuador and Vietnam.

Last year in November, Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav, addressed the High-Level Ministerial Segment on the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) at UNFCCC CoP30 in Belem, Brazil.

He called for renewed global cooperation to protect big cat species and their habitats as part of integrated climate and biodiversity action, according to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

The event was graced by the Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, Government of Nepal, Madan Prasad Pariyar, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change stated.

The Minister thanked Brazil for hosting the event and noted the timeliness of the theme: 'Protecting Big Cats, Protecting Climate and Biodiversity.' He further emphasised that ecological challenges today are deeply interconnected and require linked solutions.

Yadav noted that Big cats are apex predators, regulators of ecological balance, and sentinels of ecosystem health. 'Where big cats thrive, forests are healthier, grasslands regenerate, water systems function, and carbon is stored efficiently in living landscapes'.

He also highlighted that declines in big cat populations lead to destabilised ecosystems, weakened resilience to climate change, and loss of natural carbon sinks.

Highlighting 'Big Cat Landscapes' as 'Nature-Based Climate Solutions', the Minister called for nature-based climate action to be central in future NDCs.

He further stated, 'What we often call 'wildlife conservation' is, in fact, climate action in its most natural form'. He explained that conserving big cat landscapes directly strengthens carbon sequestration, watershed protection, disaster risk reduction, climate adaptation, and sustainable livelihoods.

The Minister highlighted IBCA's potential to support countries through technical assistance, standardised tools, capacity building, south-south cooperation, and mobilisation of blended finance and biodiversity-carbon credit mechanisms.

According to the official website, the objectives are to foster international cooperation for the conservation of seven big cat species; to enhance knowledge exchange on big cat threats and solutions; to build the capacity of range countries for effective big cat management; to raise global awareness and promote outreach activities about the importance of seven big cat conservation, and to mobilise resources and explore synergy with international bodies associated with conservation.

The IBCA's formation was a response to the urgent need for a global collaborative approach to big cat conservation. By bringing together a range of countries, conservation partners, and scientific organisations, the alliance fosters a united front against the threats to big cats. It stands as a testament to the power of international cooperation in preserving our planet's natural heritage for future generations. (ANI)