Scalar Disconnect: The Logic of Transboundary Water Governance in the Mekong (original) (raw)
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A framework for analysing transboundary water governance complexes, illustrated in the Mekong Region
Journal of Hydrology, 2012
In this paper we present a framework for analysing transboundary water governance complexes, illustrated in the Mekong Region. In this region, the sharing of waters between countries adds a critical dimension to decision making about producing food and energy, maintaining vital ecosystems, and sustaining livelihoods. Hydropower, dams, diversions, expanding cities and irrigation schemes are all in the mix. The key elements of the framework are: context, drivers, arenas, tools, decisions and impacts. The use of deliberation, technical and advocacy tools is explored and normative governance improvements are suggested.
The Hydropolitics of Integrated Water Resource Management in the Mekong River Basin
Considered a success story in transboundary water cooperation, the Mekong River Basin is a site of evolving and heterogeneous power relationships. The term “Integrated Water Resources Management” (IWRM) is often used in conjunction with themes of “sustainable development” to push a participatory approach river basin management. Inclusive and universal in theory, the practical applications of this approach require value judgments and trade-offs that are influenced by the asymmetrical developmental demands of riparian states. Differing colonial and developmental histories, methods of valuation, and institutional capacities are often overlooked in order to strengthening international cooperation. Lacking the legal capacity to enforce many of these cooperative “guidelines” (1), “integration” in the Mekong Basin often takes the shape of “soft cooperation.”1
A framework for analysing transboundary water governance complexes
In this paper we present a framework for analysing transboundary water governance complexes, illustrated in the Mekong Region. In this region, the sharing of waters between countries adds a critical dimension to decision making about producing food and energy, maintaining vital ecosystems, and sustaining livelihoods. Hydropower, dams, diversions, expanding cities and irrigation schemes are all in the mix. The key elements of the framework are: context, drivers, arenas, tools, decisions and impacts. The use of deliberation, technical and advocacy tools is explored and normative governance improvements are suggested.
Evolution of an International Water Resources Management Regime in the Mekong River Basin, The
Nat. Resources J., 2000
The Mekong Basin water management regime has existed since 1957, with three distinct periods. The Mekong Committee (1957-1975) pursued integrated basin development, which was not achieved due to geopolitical changes after the Vietnam War. During the Interim Mekong Committee era (1978-1992), the Mekong countries pursued independent water resources development, creating conflicts over water allocation. The Mekong River Commission (1995-present) aims to help member states share water in the post-Cold War era. The institutional framework of the Mekong River Commission reflects the historical legacy of the Mekong regime and must be understood in this context. Regional geopolitics, international development assistance, and water management norms are used to explain the evolution of the Mekong regime over four decades.
Water Governance under Renovation? - Concepts and Practices of IWRM in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam
2012
The objective of this paper is to explore IWRM practices in Vietnam. Based on empirical research in the Mekong Delta, the daily reality of water resources management is investigated in several sub-sectors. It will be shown that water management practices deviate to a large extent from the existing legal frameworks, policies and strategies commonly based on IWRM principles. It will be argued that the gap between official policy and actual practices is not the outcome of lacking capacity or resource scarcity, as often assumed in donor and government reports. Rather, it is a result of the peculiar structural features of the contemporary state in Vietnam.
Interactive Approaches to Water Governance in Asia
Interactive Approaches to Water Governance in Asia, 2019
The book's title notes three important issues: interactive governance, water governance, and Asia. Let us consider only interactive governance, a little-known term in water management. The editor defines it as "an interactive form of governance generally and also means the core framework developed mostly in Western democratic countries in some contexts. Comparing to this seminal wording, 'interactive approaches' and 'interactive perspectives' mean methodology and sub-concepts referring to the theory of interactive governance which are applied or mentioned in case studies in different contexts" (p. 15). Unfortunately, after reading this definition and the entire book, one is no wiser as to what "interactive governance" is, whether it can be applied to improve water management, or even how individual chapters are related to this concept. There are numerous incorrect statements in the book. The very first page claims "1977 United Nations Conference on Water at Mar del Plata, Argentina, was the first UN conference focusing on water," when hundreds of UN conferences on water were convened during the pre-1977 period. Mar del Plata was different since it has been the only intergovernmental water conference ever held by the United Nations at ministerial level. The editor is not much aware of the global water scene before 2003, and also what has happened since 2003. The issue of a global water crisis was raised by many eminent scientists and institutions repeatedly during the 1980s and 1990s. This issue most certainly did not start with the UN's World Water Development Report in 2003, which simply repeated what had been said thousands of times before. There is more wrong information. The book claims that the "concept of IWRM [integrated water resources management] was developed through a series of international consultations on water issues, such as the 1977 UN Conference on Water at Mar del Plata, …" (p. 3). I was the Chief Advisor to the Secretary General of the UN Water Conference, and also instrumental in formulating much of the resulting Mar del Plata Action Plan (Biswas 1978). IWRM has been a concept that has been around since at least the 1930s! During the UN Water Conference, IWRM was discussed somewhat briefly (Biswas 1978). By the mid-1980s, the concept of IWRM was mostly discarded since no country had succeeded in applying it. The Global Water Partnership (GWP) was created around the International Conference on Water and Environment, held in Dublin, in 1992. Its founders, primarily donors, had important roles to play in this Dublin meeting. Not surprisingly, the GWP focused its initial program on four Dublin principles and IWRM. The Dublin principles were vague and general. Thus, the GWP's programs did not find much traction. However, IWRM did because the GWP and other donors spent hundreds of millions of dollars in
Water is a fundamental resource for human life, ecosystems, and the economy. Population growth and accelerating economic development in all water use sectors together with climate change impose huge demands on global water resources. The need for sustainable use of freshwater resources is globally recognised in the water field and literature which has led to developing and researching new approaches to water resources and river basin management. The transition towards more integrated management methods is accelerating in the field of water management. The concept of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM), which includes elements of good water governance such as coordination, participation, equity, sustainable development, and inclusiveness, is a generally accepted approach to developing water resources management. The Mekong River and its tributaries form a source of living for over sixty million people. They constitute one of the richest freshwater fisheries in the world, but are increasingly under threat from accelerating economic development (hydropower, agriculture, tourism, and transport) and pollution. To meet future challenges and increasing complexity, the water sector needs to build resilience into the way water resources are managed at different scales and levels. Therefore it is important to implement integrated management methods in the Mekong region countries, including Lao PDR, to manage their water resources in a sustainable way. This research aims to contribute to the discussion about water management by looking beyond the much acclaimed integrated water resources management (IWRM) approach along with the main elements attached to it, namely integration, participation, and decentralisation. These elements have been derived from IWRM literature, most importantly the Dublin Principles (GWP, 2004; Rogers & Hall, 2003) and a paper from Xie (2006) which are relevant and core issues as regards the contents of the author's four research articles in the context of the Lao People's Democratic Republic's (Lao PDR's) water regime. Also the political and socioeconomic context of Lao PDR has impacted and led to the selection of these core IWRM themes to be studied. The Management and Transition Framework (MTF) approach and the IAD framework give a general and conceptual water management framework perspective for analysing IWRM. The author's published articles illuminate the implementation process of IWRM from different aspects in various water use sectors. The IWRM principles concerning the operational level of water management are studied in the contexts of hydropower and irrigation. Several Western and highly industrialised countries have already adapted IWRM approaches with success. In the case of Lao PDR, implementation of IWRM is special and challenging as the country is one of the last communist countries in the World. The country seeks to implement the IWRM approach and related principles in its context and it is interesting to analyse how successfully the elements of IWRM can be transferred and implemented in such a political environment. The singleparty socialist republic is built on a top-down government approach. On the other hand, the political context and decision-making environment provide a more 'plain' and simplified institutional environment compared to the complex and multistakeholder environments of the West where decision-making is multifaceted with many channels impacting decision-making and organisations are quite free to make and implement their own decisions. In a way, Lao PDR can be seen as a 'critical' case as the experience and lessons learned from Laotian IWRM implementation can increase understanding regarding the mechanisms and processes attached to IWRM processes. The aim is to produce contextualised knowledge on this specific case and to find out the logic behind the action of the IWRM processes. The articles reveal the importance of local level/bottom up participatory processes to successful IWRM implementation as well as a need for top-down policy implementation. It is crucial to create necessary conditions for the practical implementation of IWRM. IWRM literature widely emphasises the government's role to provide and develop an environment with legal and clear institutional base, public awareness, political will, conditions for all concerned parties, participation, and capacity building system at different levels from local and river basin levels up to national and regional levels. It is also crucial to take the differences in local contexts into account and to support solutions appropriate to a given context instead of universal 'blueprints' as discussed for example by Bach et al. (2011) and GWP (2000). The author hopes this research increases understanding and stimulates discussion on integrated water management approaches and practices. It aims to enhance knowledge on promoting the wise use, management, and development of water resources towards a more equal and sustainable path. The author is grateful to all who have provided valuable feedback at different stages of the research. First of all, the author wants to thank Professor Ilari Karppi from the University of Tampere School of Management who supervised the thesis, for his valuable guidance and encouragement throughout the process. The Author feels deep appreciation for the many Laotian authorities from Water Resources and Environment Administration (WREA), Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM), especially Director of Executive Planning Division of Department of Electricity, Khamso Kouphokham, who has greatly facilitated research by organising numerous high-level interviews, helping with data gathering and sharing his valuable insights during the FREPLA2020 project. Many thanks belong also to the many consultants and officials working in different development projects and NGOs in the country. The author also wants to thank the FREPLA2020 project director Jari Kaivo-oja and Professor Jyrki Luukkanen from Finland Futures Research Centre (FFRC) of University of Turku for their valuable comments on some of the research articles of the thesis. Many thanks also belong to many colleagues from FFRC and the University of Tampere School of Management who have provided feedback and comments during the research process. Sincere thanks also belong to author's family; her supporting husband Petri and children Emma and Lauri who have delighted some burdensome thesis-writing days. The author is grateful to her wonderful parents Riitta and Mauri Vilen, and parents-in-law Seija and Taisto Jusi who have provided support and made it possible to find the time necessary to complete the doctoral thesis.
International Journal of Water Resources Development, 2019
The possible negative consequences of changes that are occurring in the Mekong River because of development activities are raising concerns. Scholars have been wondering whether multilateral or bilateral water treaties can be used by the states sharing the river to protect their interests. Moreover, the UN Watercourses Convention's entry into force has made researchers question its potential impact on the management of shared freshwaters. This article will highlight the scenarios in which multilateral or bilateral treaties can be used to manage the Mekong River, taking into account the entry into force of the Watercourses Convention.