1. Mekong River Commission, Tools to Implement the 1995 Agreement - Dr Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, WUP Team Leader
28-Apr-17
Mekong River Commission (MRC) Water Utilization Program (WUP) Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, WUP Team Leader 21 June 2005 Salvador, Brazil
Washington DC, 17 June 2005

2. Contents Mekong Cooperation Mekong River Commission
Mekong River Commission, Tools to Implement the 1995 Agreement - Dr Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, WUP Team Leader
28-Apr-17
Contents
Mekong Cooperation
Mekong River Commission
Water Utilization Programme
Washington DC, 17 June 2005

3. Mekong River Basin The 8th largest and 12th longest river of the world
Mekong River Commission, Tools to Implement the 1995 Agreement - Dr Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, WUP Team Leader
28-Apr-17
The 8th largest and 12th longest river of the world
Upper Mekong
China – 16% of total flow
Myanmar – 2%
Highlight overall basin location with respect to lower Mekong Basin states:
Annual flow of 475 billion m3: the Mekong River ranks as the eighth largest river in the world.
For comparison, in terms of annual flow, the Mekong River is larger than the Columbia River but smaller than the Mississippi River. The Mekong Basin experiences a tropical monsoon climate that produces pronounced wet and dry seasons with relatively warm weather year-round.
During the wet months of August and September, peak flows in the Mekong River can be as high as 50,000 m3/s
During the dry months of April and May, the flow into the Mekong Delta is reduced to around 2,250 m3/s
During the wet season, torrential rains result in large-scale flooding along the entire reach of the Mekong River, with extensive over-bank flows in Cambodia and Vietnam.
Because of the warm weather, there is no snowpack (except in the extreme north in China) to help store the precipitation
Every year, floods in the Mekong Basin kill dozens, sometimes hundreds, of people and cause extensive damage to crops and structures
Lower Mekong Basin
Cambodia – 18%
Lao PDR– 35%
Thailand – 18%
Viet Nam – 11%
Washington DC, 17 June 2005

4. Mekong Cooperation History
1957
Committee for Coordination of Investigation of LMB (Cambodia, Lao, Thailand & Vietnam by UNESCAP)
1978
Interim Mekong Committee (Lao, Thailand & Vietnam)
1995
Mekong River Commission (Cambodia, Lao, Thailand & Vietnam)

5. The 1995 Agreement Agreement to cooperate for sustainable development
Mekong River Commission, Tools to Implement the 1995 Agreement - Dr Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, WUP Team Leader
28-Apr-17
The 1995 Agreement
Agreement to cooperate for sustainable development
Underlying legal principles:
Sovereign Equality and Territorial Integrity
Reasonable and Equitable Utilization
Protection of the Environment – a key element
Establishment of the Mekong River Commission (MRC)
Washington DC, 17 June 2005

6. MRC Organizational Structure
Government of Cambodia
Government of Lao PDR
Government of Thailand
Government of Vietnam
COUNCIL
NATIONAL MEKONG COMMITTEES
DONOR CONSULTATIVE GROUP
JOINT COMMITTEE
Mekong River Com-mission Secretariat

7. MRC Programmes Core Programmes Sectoral Programmes
Mekong River Commission, Tools to Implement the 1995 Agreement - Dr Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, WUP Team Leader
28-Apr-17
MRC Programmes
Core Programmes
Basin Development Plan
Water Utilization Programme
Environment Programme
Flood Management & Mitigation programme
Sectoral Programmes
Hydropower Programme
Navigation Programme
Fisheries Programme
Agriculture, Irrigation and Forestry Programme
Tourism Programme
Washington DC, 17 June 2005

8. Water Utilization Program (WUP)
WUP: one of the “core programmes” of the MRC
WUP provides the “tools” to implement the 1995 Agreement
A 7-year WUP start-up project (2000 – 2006) with
$11m GEF-financing + $1m from MRC
$5.3m co-financing from Finland, Japan and France

9. Water Utilization Program (WUP)
WUP has 4 main activities
1. Basin Modeling and Knowledge Base
2. Environmental and Trans-boundary
Analysis
3. Rules/Procedures Formulation
4. Management and Institutional
Strengthening

10. 1. Basin Modeling
A basin-wide computer-based modeling and knowledge base system developed in 2.5 year with participatory approach
A powerful and transparent tool to support basin-wide planning and trans-boundary impacts assessment
Completed in March 2004 and approved by all MRC member states as a MRC official planning and analytical tool

11. 2. Environmental and Trans- boundary Analysis
2 main activities
Integrated Basin Flows Management (IBFM)
Application of Environmental Flows Approach
Environmental flows assessment using multi-disciplinary panel based on assessment of trade-offs between development opportunities, economic, environmental and social beneficial uses
Integrated Water Quality Management (IWQM)
Formulation of Water Quality Objectives (WQOs)
Identification of Beneficial Uses and recommendations on Water Quality Standards

12. 3. Rules Formulation Total of 5 Rules/Procedures under WUP
Three Procedural Rules - completed
Data and information exchange and sharing – agreed in 2001
Water use monitoring – agreed in 2003
Notification, prior consultation and agreement – agreed in 2003
Two Technical Rules/Procedures – in progress
Maintenance of flow on the mainstream
Water quality – 2005

13. Conclusions
MRC Water Utilization Program - GEF-financed support is due to be completed in late 2006
A challenging process!
Progress to date demonstrates the continued commitment of the member states to the 1995 Agreement
Appreciation to GEF/World Bank and co-financers for their constant support

14. Thank you for your kind attention