Water governance

The Mekong River Commission’s (MRC) annual report, published 16 June, includes a noteworthy statement calling for increased transparency from China over upstream dam operations on the river. The Mekong is Southeast Asia’s longest river and acts as a lifeline to 60 million people. Downtream Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and ...

Vietnam needs to effectively cooperate with other countries the Mekong River flows through and work to internationalise the region’s water issues, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha said on June 15. He made the call at the ninth session of the 14th National Assembly. Vietnam is ...

Kyar Kone Te Tike is a small town in Magwe division in central Myanmar, about 19 miles away from the Magwe Natmauk Road. Daw Mar Oo has lived here all of her life. Come summertime, finding drinking water is always a struggle. There are three small hand-dug ...

The Mekong River Commission(MRC) yesterday said the water levels across the vast majority of lower Mekong basin have now returned to their normal long-term averages. The announcement was made after the MRC last month called member countries and Dialogue Partners to improve the management of the ...

As the Tonle Sap floodplain empties into the Mekong this spring, the Cambodians who rely on these waters face bleak prospects, with fish catches reportedly 10 to 20% of previous years. Blame for the precipitous decline in the ecology has been put on the many hydropower projects ...

Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon is calling for international efforts to monitor the controversial Luang Prabang dam project in Laos and the impact it will have on the Mekong River, where water levels have been unusually low. The issue was raised yesterday at a meeting chaired ...

A top-ranking Chinese official declared that the country is releasing more water from its dams on the upper Mekong River in order to aid drought-stricken downstream neighbors.  The announcement from Foreign Minister Wang Yi, made at a meeting of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation group, comes as the beleaguered ...

The Department of Water Supply under the Ministry of Public Works and Transport is targeting an expansion of projects across the country this year after racking up achievements in the sector during 2019. To achieve its goal to develop provincial water supply and sanitation systems, the ...

Thailand will raise concerns about its current drought during a Mekong River Commission meeting expected next month, the Thai water-resources chief said, as local farmers complained that dams in China were choking the waterway on which millions depend for their livelihoods. Somkiat Prajamwong, director of Thailand’s ...

Thai authorities are trucking drinking water to parts of Bangkok and urging residents to shower less as a worsening drought and rising sea levels have increased salinity, a growing risk faced by many Asian cities, climate researchers said. Bangkok’s water authority said the capital’s tap water ...