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Project Rationale and Linkage to Country/Regional Strategy |
The Mekong River stretches through the People's Republic of China, Myanmar, the Lao PDR, Thailand, Cambodia, and Viet Nam with a total land area of 795,000 square kilometers (km2). The Lower Mekong Basin (LMB) is home to about 60 million people in Cambodia, the Lao PDR, Thailand, and Viet Nam. The Mekong River stands apart because of the large fluctuations in seasonal discharge - very low flows in the dry season yet extensive flooding in the wet season. River flow is largely unaffected by water control structures and follows the seasonal hydrological cycle.
Countries in the LMB have varying levels of capacity to prepare for and manage flood- and drought-related disasters. Actions are mostly reactive, rather than proactive, and are uncoordinated. Better flood and drought disaster preparedness requires (i) knowledge availability and sharing of potential changes to the spatial and temporal distribution of climate and hydrological variables over the basin as a whole; (ii) capacity for timely flood and drought forecasting and dissemination of warnings to communities at risk; (iii) engagement of at-risk communities in the identification, analysis, treatment, monitoring, and evaluation of disaster risks in order to reduce their vulnerabilities and enhance their coping capacities; and (iv) improved condition of water control infrastructure.
The Project is aligned with the relevant policies, strategies, and programs such as the following: (i) Lao PDR: Disaster Management Action Frameworks, 2003 2020; and the (ii) Viet Nam: National Strategy for Natural Disaster Prevention, Response and Mitigation approved by the Prime Minister in 2007 (Decision No. 172/2007), National Targeted Program to Respond to Climate Change, Strategic Direction of Water Resources Development (to 2020 and toward 2050), the Mekong Delta Master Plan.
The Project is aligned with ADB''s Water Operational Plan, 2011 -2020, which identifies flood and drought mitigation (as part of disaster risk management) as one of the two urgent challenges to be addressed in the integrated water resource management process. The Project is also aligned with the ADB's Disaster and Emergency Assistance Policy (2004) as it will support the governments and local communities to identify and manage risks from natural hazards.
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