The programme will consist of high-level political plenary sessions, bringing together policy-makers from the Mekong Region as well as other regions and river basins and specific technical sessions aiming at promoting the important science/policy dialogue.
Background
The international debate over water resources management - including its linkages to other sectors and issues - is currently circling around a number of issues of high importance to the management of international river basins in general as well as to the Mekong River Basin specifically. One of the key issues is management of water resources, energy and food security in an integrated manner considering a changing climate. Other issues are how to achieve green growth that ensures the socioeconomic growth of countries while ensuring the long-term sustainability of their development paths, or issues related to the sharing of growth benefits with a wide range of stakeholders, ensuring inclusive development for all. In the upcoming years, some of these topics will be addressed explicitly at the international level. For instance, 2014 will be the UN's year on water and energy. This includes the publication of the World Water Development Report with a specific focus on water and energy and the World Water Week in Stockholm focusing specifically on questions related to water and energy. In 2015, the revision of the MDGs is on the international agenda. In this context, a potential specific Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) on water is being discussed internationally at the UN as well as in various other international and regional fora. These topics are of high importance to transboundary river basin organisations (RBOs) and their efforts in managing water resources.
These topics of international and regional relevance are closely interlinked (see figure to the left): the interdependence between water, energy and food resources – the key topic of MRC's last international conference "Mekong to Rio" – and their integrated management in a changing climate provides the basis for green growth. Green growth in turn is a prerequisite for achieving sustainable development for riparian states of a river basin. Such sustainable development can, however, only be achieved if benefits from the use of water, energy and food resources are shared amongst different stakeholders.
Acknowledging the importance of these topics, the MRC therefore aims at engaging with other transboundary watercourses and the different actors involved in their management in a discussion about sustainable river basin management and development that benefits the entire basin and its populations. Following the First MRC Summit and the Pre-Summit International Conference "Transboundary Water Resources Management in a Changing World", held in 2010, and the {calendar/view__408/international-conference-on-transboundary-river-basin-management-phuket|MRC International Conference "Mekong to Rio" held in 2012}, the Mekong River Commission (MRC) will therefore organise a third international conference conjoint with its Second MRC Summit: the Pre-Summit International Conference entitled "Cooperation for Energy, Food and Water Security in trans-boundary Basins under changing climate".
The Conference
The programme will consist of high-level political plenary sessions, bringing together policy-makers from the Mekong Region as well as other regions and river basins and specific technical sessions aiming at promoting the important science/policy dialogue. The Conference will focus on the benefits of transboundary cooperation in ensuring energy, food and water security with a nexus and climate change perspective. The aforementioned international and regional topics, which are currently being discussed, are also the challenges that river basins around the world, including the Mekong River Basin are facing. Sharing experiences and drawing lessons from these experiences will be important to address the challenges. While the water, energy and food security nexus in a transboundary context is the underlying and cross-cutting subject of the conference, three specific topics will be discussed: 1) climate change adaptation, 2) sustainable development goal for water and 3) benefits of cooperation.
Objective and Outcomes of the Conference
The central objective of the conference is to provide a platform to MRC Member Countries, Dialogue Partners, Development Partners, civil society representatives and partners from other river basin management bodies as well as academia to address and discuss recent challenges and potential solutions in river basin management. In addition, the conference aims at contributing to the international debates around the management of international watercourses, the role of RBOs and the benefits of cooperation in managing them sustainably. From the international conference and the fruitful exchange of knowledge, MRC wishes to generate the following outcomes: (1) An increased awareness of the interplay between different water resources management challenges, and increased knowledge of what regional cooperation means, mechanisms and methods for sustainably managing shared river basins to the benefits of all through an active and inspiring discussion amongst participants from different regions and different river basins, engaging in mutual learning and the sharing of experiences in international river basins; (2) A Conference Statement, informing the international debates, especially in light of on-going discussions in 2014 and following years, and providing Key Messages on Mekong issues that will feed into the Second Summit Declaration. (3) A conference publication that summarises knowledge and experiences discussed and shared during the conference, to be presented at various high-level international events, including the World Water Week in Stockholm in August 2014. These outcomes will also inform the Second MRC Summit, to be held back-to-back with the conference.
Audience
The Conference should bring together representatives of MRC Member Countries at the senior level, members of MRC Programmes, senior officials of MRC's Dialogue Partners, representatives of the donor community, delegates from international governmental and non-governmental organisations and other river basin organisations as well as academia. Overall, 250 to 300 participants are expected.
Venue
The Conference will be held during 2-4 April 2014 in Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam. It is hosted by Viet Nam and the Mekong River Commission in collaboration with partners.
