Mekong River Commission

 

Denmark is the major donor to the programme, and has been so since the mid-1990s. Danida, the international development agency of the Danish Government, provides about 90 percent of the funding for the Fisheries Programme. The programme's success has been largely due to Danida's sustained commitment to developing fisheries in the Mekong Basin. Funding from Danida allows the programme to maintain core functions and operating capacity, thereby facilitating efficient entry into the programme by other donors.

Swedish International Development Assistance (Sida) funds several activities of the technical Advisory Body (TAB) for Fisheries Management. The TAB has the charter to develop and implement fisheries policy, particularly that relating to transboundary resources in the Lower Mekong Basin.

The Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) provides funding for studies on the genetic composition of an important and abundant group of cyprinid fishes, commonly known as trey riel in Cambodia and ca linh in Viet Nam. Often preserved, they are important for food security, especially in poor rural communities. The purpose of the research is to provide information on stock composition and to train managers in the use of genetic information.

The United Kingdom, through its Department for International Development (DFID), funds two related studies on data collection and sharing in fisheries co-management and adaptive learning approaches for enhancing fisheries. The funding is channelled through MRAG, a UK-based consulting firm dedicated to promoting sustainable use of natural resources. Both studies will enable information generated in the Mekong region to be used in fisheries development in other countries.