On two days of July 03 and 04, 2017, Can Tho University (CTU) collaborated Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Australia, and Sustainable Mekong Research Network (SUMERNET) to hold a workshop on Drought and Water Scarcity in the Lancang-Mekong Basin: Uncertainty, Impacts and Opportunities. The workshop attracted over 50 attendants from Vietnam, Australia, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia, and China.
 

The workshop on Drought and Water Scarcity in the Lancang-Mekong Basin: Uncertainty, Impacts and Opportunities

The Lancang-Mekong river is a trans-boundary river in Southeast Asia, flowing through six nations including China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. The river basin currently houses 70 million people, of which 85% are rural poor people with livelihoods directly dependent on the water availability for agriculture, fishery and forestry. Climate change, rapid population growth and socio-conomic development are the main reasons leading to the water scarcity in the Mekong Basin’s countries. there is a need of collaborations among Mekong Basin’s country partners and with China for a better trans-boundary water scarcity management. 
 

The international workshop on Drought and Water Scarcity in the Lancang-Mekong Basin: Uncertainty, Impacts and Opportunities with the aim of gathering participants from the whole Mekong Basin to discuss and share understanding of the issues of water scarcity along the whole Mekong river, including its driving forces, pressure, status and impacts to different sectors, and how each country in different sub-catchments have been responding to the issues of water scarcity. Besides, the workshop also focuses on exploring new adaptation research ideas and potential collaborative adaptation approaches for water scarcity issues in the Lancang-Mekong Basin, thereby developing and expanding the research collaborative network for water resources management among the Lancang-Mekong Basin’s nations.

On July 03, 2017, the participants have taken a field trip to My Xuyen district, Soc Trang province in the Mekong Delta to experience the water scarcity issues and current adaptation initiatives in the coastal area of the Mekong Delta.

Assoc.Prof.Dr. Ha Thanh Toan, Rector of CTU speaking at the the opening

Dr. Minh Nguyen, representative of CSIRO in his keynote speechon the Mekong Basin water scarcity issues and the need for collaboration among Lancang-Mekong Basin countries

Assoc.Prof.Dr. Nguyen Hieu Trung, Dean of College of Environment and Natural Resources presenting on the potential approaches to support trans-boundary strategy development under uncertainties

Sharing ideas

Group work

Group photo

(Information and Network Management Center)