1. people  science  environment  partners Economic, Social and Ecological Issues in the Lower Mekong Basin Countries Mahfuzuddin Ahmed WorldFish Center, Penang, Malaysia ECOST Project Planning Meeting, 25-28 October 2005 Rome, Italy

2. people  science  environment  partners The Mekong Commons and Livelihoods 65 million people - mostly along rivers and waterways High dependence on common resources – water, fishery, land and forestry Interdependencies between private and common property Rural natural resources as safety net for poorer people

3. people  science  environment  partners Economic Significance of the Basin hydro-power water diversion and irrigation logging navigation fisheries tourism Subsistence Fishing Commercial Fishing

4. people  science  environment  partners Environmental Significance of the Basin  biodiversity (fish, wildlife, vegetation)  nutrient-rich silt  natural habitat (breeding/nursing of fish and wildlife)

5. people  science  environment  partners Socio-cultural Significance of the Basin landscape natural heritage local and indigenous livelihood and lifestyle human settlement and cultural diversity

6. people  science  environment  partners Perspectives Toward Significance of the Mekong River Increased differences among riparian countries due to: Political division Economic development Geo-political history Geographic position Relative importance of the basin

7. people  science  environment  partners Significance of the Mekong to Riparian Countries Cambodia and Lao PDR -85% of the national territory of each country lies within the basin -it is the dominant resource system for these 2 largely agrarian states Vietnam -the delta forms 10% of the national area but produces about half of its rice crop, vital both for food security and for Vietnam’s status as the world’s third largest rice exporter Thailand -the basin is part of the country’s poorest regions in the northeast

8. people  science  environment  partners A Demographic Characteristic Share of Population Under 15 Years Note: Data for Myanmar not available Source: MRC 1997 Implications on the future:  labor market  population growth  demand for food  agricultural development  socioeconomic  infrastructure development

9. people  science  environment  partners Share of Agriculture in GDP Note: Lao PDR – 1998 % share of agriculture Source: ADB 2000

10. people  science  environment  partners Fish including various aquatic organisms are a major source of protein and nutrition for the Mekong Basin countries “Where there is water, there is fish”  Permanent water (river, lake, etc.)  Flooded forest, secondary forest, and grassland  Receding and floating ricefields  Seasonally flooded crop fields  Swamp Role of Aquatic Resources in the Mekong Basin

11. people  science  environment  partners  Aquatic supplies consist of  Fish (capture and culture)  Aquatic wildlife  Aquatic plants and vegetables  Incomplete and fragmented statistics  Understates importance of aquatic resources  Aquatic sector receives a low priority in national plans  Aquatic sector is considered least attractive for investment Role of Aquatic Resources …

12. people  science  environment  partners 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 FISH CONSUMPTION (kg/caput/year) Thailand Cambodia Lao PDR Vietnam Use of Aquatic Resources in Lower Mekong Countries Baran and Guttman (Paper in preparation)

13. people  science  environment  partners Capture Fisheries Production in the Lower Mekong Basin Countries CountriesAnnual Catch Range (t) Cambodia289,000 – 431,000 Lao PDR27,000 Thailand303,000 Vietnam190,000 Total809,000 – 951,000 Sources: Ahmed, et al., 1998; Deap, et al., 1998; MRC, 1992; Jensen, 1996

14. people  science  environment  partners $ Fish > $ Rice + $ Coffee Vietnam’s Agricultural Export Why Fish Matters for the Poor

15. people  science  environment  partners Development Challenges Wise Use of Resources  Exploitation for human welfare  ensure stability in the supply  ensure equity (national, basinwide and transnational)  Conservation of natural values  protect against decline and collapse Management for economic well-being  optimize total productivity (value and volume)  quantify resources  determine the sustainable level for human consumption

16. people  science  environment  partners Focus on Poverty Elimination  Use of multi-sectoral and inter-agency strategy for development and management  Promote targeted development of technology and policy options Development Challenges

17. people  science  environment  partners  Declining trends in natural resources  Increasing vulnerability of the poor people dependent on natural resources  Market forces reinforcing the over- exploitation of the resources and displacement of the poor  Growing differences between regional, national and local interests over natural resources Emerging Issues

18. people  science  environment  partners Thank you...