Feature - Regional consultation and the
Basin Development Planning Process
The Mekong River Commission convened a Basin Development Plan
Stakeholder Consultation in March 2008. Participants represented
a wide range of stakeholder groups from state and non-state
agencies in the four Lower Mekong Basin countries.
The consultation was intended to renew and further enhance
partnerships between the MRC and the stakeholder groups involved
in the BDP process.
Issues on the agenda for discussion included the sharing of
water resources for domestic use, hydropower, navigation and
fisheries, plus preservation of the river ecosystem, and promotion
of regional cooperation. The Basin Development Planning process
is designed to include different views so that the MRC can assist
Member Countries in developing a shared vision to develop the
Basin and alleviate poverty.
Some of the Key Messages to emerge from
the BDP Stakeholder Consultation:
Major interventions, such as hydropower and other changes in
land-use will lead to modifications in the annual flows of rivers
in the Mekong Basin, and the use of water, complicating the
task of development planning. Therefore, the decision-making
processes needs to become more inclusive to accommodate the
interests of all relevant sectors.
- Stakeholders expect strong leadership from the MRC in bringing
together government agencies, civil society and private sector
groups and the media to exchange views on development opportunities
and constraints within the LMB.
- The challenge for the MRC is to demonstrate the impact of
an MRC Strategic Plan at both basin and national levels. A
shared view emerged that water resources development must
be made sustainable through a comprehensive planning process.
- Several concerns have become critical; how the Mekong region
will respond to the emerging challenges of food security and
high food, oil and gas prices; how MRC Member Countries will
work together to address issues of water availability in the
context of global climate change; national socio-economic
dynamics; and how the MRC will ensure its continued relevance.
Cooperation with upstream countries and MRC's role in this
regard need to be addressed.
- There is a general understanding of the potential for water
resources development in the Basin given the hydrological
conditions of the river, the relatively low amount of water
storage-per-head compared to other river basins, and the potential
increase of flow during the dry season due to the construction
of dams upstream.
- Hydropower development and the impacts on fisheries are
at the centre of discussion on future water resource development.
Fisheries are essential for sustaining the livelihoods of
poor people. The impacts of hydropower development on fisheries
are well known, if not always accepted by all. There are winners
and losers from hydropower and participants felt that the
poor are mostly likely to lose.
- However, sustainability of both hydropower and fisheries
is possible. Good planning is the key. Avoidance and mitigating
measures include the careful location and design of hydropower
dams so that they do not block fish migration routes.
- National sovereignty is an issue with respect to aligning
national water policies with the IWRM-based basin strategy.
Thailand and Viet Nam have smaller land areas in the Basin
than Cambodia and Lao PDR and, consequently, to a large extent,
their national policies reflect the diversity of other river
basins in their respective countries.