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Showing posts with label Lower Mekong area. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lower Mekong area. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Friday, July 13, 2012
Thursday, July 28, 2011
The Lower Mekong Initiative Going Strong
Multinational effort fosters integrated cooperation and capacity building among Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.
07-27-2011
Voice of America
Editorials
"We support your efforts to build a stronger foundation for prosperity and progress." -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
In late July, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the Foreign Ministers and senior representatives of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam met in Bali, Indonesia for the 4th Lower Mekong Initiative Ministerial Meeting. The meeting highlighted the growing cooperation among the United States and the countries of the Lower Mekong River basin in key areas of common concern, such as education, environment, public health, and infrastructure.
The Lower Mekong Initiative, or LMI, is a multinational effort initiated by Secretary of State Clinton in 2009 to foster integrated cooperation and capacity building among Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.
"We began this initiative two years ago to give rise to more frequent and effective cooperation among the Lower Mekong countries and the United States," said Secretary of State Clinton. "We saw many opportunities for effective partnership on issues that impact the people of the region: health, education, infrastructure, environmental protection, water quality, and so much else. And we thought there was value in taking an integrated approach, because all of these issues are connected. If water sources are polluted, health declines; if children are unhealthy, they struggle to learn; if education systems are weak, it affects the success of public health and environmental campaigns. So the initiative reflects the reality of this interconnection," she said.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Lower Mekong Nations, Donors To Strengthen Cooperation
7/25/2011
(RTTNews) - The Ministerial Meeting of the Friends of the Lower Mekong has agreed on the importance of close cooperation among donors and the lower Mekong countries to enhance effectiveness, mobilize resources, and promote synergy of regional assistance programs aimed at supporting inclusive, sustainable, and environmentally-responsible growth.
Foreign Ministers and senior representatives of Australia, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Viet Nam, European Union, Asian Development Bank, and World Bank met in the Indonesian resort island of Bali at the weekend for the first Friends of the Lower Mekong (FLM) Ministerial Meeting.
They noted the importance of effectively managing sustainable and equitable development in the lower Mekong sub-region. They discussed challenges affecting the Mekong River and the region in a variety of sectors, including the environment, public health, social development, livelihood, food security, education, and infrastructure. They also affirmed the importance of conducting assistance programs in the Mekong region in a transparent manner.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Lower Mekong countries, U.S. meet on cooperation expansion
19th March 2011
Business Ghana
Business Ghana
Senior officials from the foreign ministries of the Lower Mekong countries--Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam--met here on Friday with the U.S. State Department officials to draft a joint action plan for the development in four key sectors.
"The two-day meeting aims at developing a joint plan of action for the cooperation on education, environment, health and infrastructure in
the Lower Mekong countries ahead of the regional forum of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in July in Indonesia," a statement released in the meeting said.
Tuot Panha, undersecretary of state for Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, said during the opening ceremony that the U.S. assistance to the Lower Mekong countries is very vital to develop the region.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
US plan for Mekong river faces challenge from China [- A dime short, a day late for Uncle Sam?]
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
By Nirmal Ghosh
The Straits Times/Asia News Network
By Nirmal Ghosh
The Straits Times/Asia News Network
Washington's Lower Mekong Initiative is gathering speed, but it still does not have enough funding and lags behind China's level of engagement in Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Known in short as the LMI, the initiative was unveiled by United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in July last year as a blueprint for the U.S. to get involved in Indochina again — this time in a peaceful way.
Since then, higher-level American officials have visited the region, and meetings on the sectors identified under the LMI have become more frequent.
The broader aim is to balance China's growing footprint in the region, from which the U.S. withdrew after losing a bitter war in the 1970s.
There is “no question that U.S. policy is being driven by geopolitics,” noted Richard Cronin, co-author of a new report on the Mekong by the Washington-based Stimson Centre.
Initiatives to address health threats and pandemics are a key component of the LMI.
Another obvious focus is the increasingly troubled Mekong, which ranks with South America's Amazon as one of the world's most productive rivers.
The 4,880-kilometer-long Mekong is a lifeline for as many as 60 million people, across countries whose rivalries have not quite subsided.
The millions who depend on the river for fish and water are vulnerable to its changes, which are essentially inevitable once large dams are constructed.
Major hydropower projects for the Mekong appear to be going ahead, despite longstanding concerns over the ecological and food security of the region in the future, and of Beijing turning the Mekong into a “Chinese river” by modifying and controlling the upper reaches.
Four of China's dams on the upper Mekong are currently operational, but four more are on the cards.
The U.S., while largely welcomed by the region's governments, which analysts point out do not want to be dominated by China, is still groping for a foothold in China's shadow.
Known in short as the LMI, the initiative was unveiled by United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in July last year as a blueprint for the U.S. to get involved in Indochina again — this time in a peaceful way.
Since then, higher-level American officials have visited the region, and meetings on the sectors identified under the LMI have become more frequent.
The broader aim is to balance China's growing footprint in the region, from which the U.S. withdrew after losing a bitter war in the 1970s.
There is “no question that U.S. policy is being driven by geopolitics,” noted Richard Cronin, co-author of a new report on the Mekong by the Washington-based Stimson Centre.
Initiatives to address health threats and pandemics are a key component of the LMI.
Another obvious focus is the increasingly troubled Mekong, which ranks with South America's Amazon as one of the world's most productive rivers.
The 4,880-kilometer-long Mekong is a lifeline for as many as 60 million people, across countries whose rivalries have not quite subsided.
The millions who depend on the river for fish and water are vulnerable to its changes, which are essentially inevitable once large dams are constructed.
Major hydropower projects for the Mekong appear to be going ahead, despite longstanding concerns over the ecological and food security of the region in the future, and of Beijing turning the Mekong into a “Chinese river” by modifying and controlling the upper reaches.
Four of China's dams on the upper Mekong are currently operational, but four more are on the cards.
The U.S., while largely welcomed by the region's governments, which analysts point out do not want to be dominated by China, is still groping for a foothold in China's shadow.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
US steps up development talks [in the lower Mekong region]
15/08/2010
Achara Ashayagachat
Bangkok Post
Achara Ashayagachat
Bangkok Post
The United States is talking to international agencies and governments in the region in a bid to get its Mekong development programme off the ground.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Phuket in July last year about the US plans to expand its role in the lower Mekong region, comprising Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam.
Richard Cronin of the Washington-based Stimson Centre, who works on recommendations for the programme, said he was talking to agencies from the lower Mekong countries and their governments. ''We are still in the process of coordinating when and how to get money into the programme,'' said Mr Cronin, who advises on non-traditional security issues such as fisheries, food security and water boundaries in the region.
The US would step up support for education, health and climate change, said Mr Cronin.
He was speaking on the sidelines of his talk on ''Harnessing the Mekong: Human Security and Regional Stability'' at Chulalongkorn University last week.
He observed a meeting between the Mekong River Commission (MRC) and other agencies on development programmes in Vientiane two weeks ago.
He also met non-governmental organisations in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City two weeks ago, and in Bangkok met the Foreign Ministry and World Bank.
''There are varying degrees of welcome. Most countries in Asean are happy to see more US involvement. That includes Thailand and Vietnam.
''But some countries are uncertain about implications of having US involvement in the the MRC,'' he said.
Mr Cronin said Washington could restore the geopolitical power balance needed to support new development in Southeast Asia.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Phuket in July last year about the US plans to expand its role in the lower Mekong region, comprising Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam.
Richard Cronin of the Washington-based Stimson Centre, who works on recommendations for the programme, said he was talking to agencies from the lower Mekong countries and their governments. ''We are still in the process of coordinating when and how to get money into the programme,'' said Mr Cronin, who advises on non-traditional security issues such as fisheries, food security and water boundaries in the region.
The US would step up support for education, health and climate change, said Mr Cronin.
He was speaking on the sidelines of his talk on ''Harnessing the Mekong: Human Security and Regional Stability'' at Chulalongkorn University last week.
He observed a meeting between the Mekong River Commission (MRC) and other agencies on development programmes in Vientiane two weeks ago.
He also met non-governmental organisations in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City two weeks ago, and in Bangkok met the Foreign Ministry and World Bank.
''There are varying degrees of welcome. Most countries in Asean are happy to see more US involvement. That includes Thailand and Vietnam.
''But some countries are uncertain about implications of having US involvement in the the MRC,'' he said.
Mr Cronin said Washington could restore the geopolitical power balance needed to support new development in Southeast Asia.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Act before it goes 'Up in Smoke'
Lower Mekong countries, including Thailand, have been told to work together to minimise the effects of global warming and to better cope with the effects of climate change.
November 19, 2007
The Nation (Thailand)
The latest Asia-Pacific-region environment report to be released today says the lower Mekong area is "highly sensitive to climate change".
The report, "Up in Smoke: Asia and the Pacific", said the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) expected the lower-Mekong region would face more extreme weather events, as average temperatures had risen between 0.3 and 0.8 degrees Celsius over the past century.
The International Institute for Environment and Development report contains contributions from non-profit organisations.
Its foreword is from IPCC chairman Rajendra Pachauri and warns climate change could have a major impact on the region's ecosystems and biodiversity, hydrology and water resources, agriculture, forestry and fisheries, mountains and coastal lands and human settlements and health.
It encouraged governments in the four lower-Mekong countries - Cambodia, Laos, Burma and Thailand - to immediately take action to tackle the problems.
"Adaptation and mitigation measures are crucial and should be incorporated into future development plans adopted at the country level," it recommended.
"Up in Smoke" said a one-metre sea-level rise could flood 15,000 to 20,000 square kilometres of the Mekong River delta.
In this scenario, it said, some 2,500 square kilometres of mangroves would be lost and around 1,000 square kilometres of cultivated land and marine farms would become salt marsh.
In Thailand, rising sea levels could cause saltwater intrusion 40 kilometres up the Chao Phya, Tha Chin and Bang Pakong rivers.
The report warned that 10 million people could be affected when salt contaminated their main freshwater source.
Increasing aridity resulting from global warming will damage thousands of plant species in the country's tropical forests, it added.
November 19, 2007
The Nation (Thailand)
The latest Asia-Pacific-region environment report to be released today says the lower Mekong area is "highly sensitive to climate change".
The report, "Up in Smoke: Asia and the Pacific", said the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) expected the lower-Mekong region would face more extreme weather events, as average temperatures had risen between 0.3 and 0.8 degrees Celsius over the past century.
The International Institute for Environment and Development report contains contributions from non-profit organisations.
Its foreword is from IPCC chairman Rajendra Pachauri and warns climate change could have a major impact on the region's ecosystems and biodiversity, hydrology and water resources, agriculture, forestry and fisheries, mountains and coastal lands and human settlements and health.
It encouraged governments in the four lower-Mekong countries - Cambodia, Laos, Burma and Thailand - to immediately take action to tackle the problems.
"Adaptation and mitigation measures are crucial and should be incorporated into future development plans adopted at the country level," it recommended.
"Up in Smoke" said a one-metre sea-level rise could flood 15,000 to 20,000 square kilometres of the Mekong River delta.
In this scenario, it said, some 2,500 square kilometres of mangroves would be lost and around 1,000 square kilometres of cultivated land and marine farms would become salt marsh.
In Thailand, rising sea levels could cause saltwater intrusion 40 kilometres up the Chao Phya, Tha Chin and Bang Pakong rivers.
The report warned that 10 million people could be affected when salt contaminated their main freshwater source.
Increasing aridity resulting from global warming will damage thousands of plant species in the country's tropical forests, it added.
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