By Mr. Sreng Sataro

Minster Counsellor of the Royal Embassy of Cambodia in Beijing

This year celebrates the 5th anniversary of the Mekong-Lancang Cooperation, which has made significant contribution to promoting development and cooperation in the Mekong countries. Over the past five years, the MLC has transformed itself into a worthy cooperation framework by forging closer collaboration of all six countries to work together in promoting economic and social development, enhancing the well-being of people, narrowing regional gap and supporting ASEAN Community building and contributing to the implementation of the United Nations Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The Mekong-Lancang Cooperation has been an essential solidarity framework to maintain regional peace and stability and promote shared prosperity and people-to-people exchanges in the region. Since its launch on March 23, 2016, the MLC has rapidly developed and achieved remarkable results. The new projects financed under the MLC Special Fund that has produced many tangible benefits in enhancing the livelihood and well-being of our citizens. Among these projects, Cambodia has benefited from 55 projects that support a broad range of cooperation activities in the field of rural development, community business creation, water resources, agriculture, education and cultural heritage, among many others. Taking this opportunity, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to the Chinese government for financing this Special Fund. Furthermore, at the 3rd MLC Leaders’ Meeting in August 2020, Leaders reaffirmed their resolute determination to address the severe impacts caused by the COVID-19 by upgrading cooperation on public health through the establishing the Mekong-Lancang Public Health Community. I also wish to thank CPC, Government and People of China for assisting Cambodia to fight against the COVID-19.

Under the key priority areas of cooperation, water resources cooperation among the six countries has played a significant role in the survival and social well-being of the people. Since the establishment of the MLC Water Center in 2017, cooperation in technical exchanges and personnel training, drought and flood management, data and information sharing, capacity building, joint research and analysis have been comprehensively enhanced.

The practical cooperation has been further advanced through various activities including the 1st Ministerial Meeting of Mekong-Lancang Water Resources Cooperation held in December 2019 in Beijing and the Signing of the MoU between Mekong River Commission Secretariat and MLC Water Center. On 24 August 2020, the leaders of the six member countries agreed to establish a Mekong-Lancang Water Resources Cooperation Information Sharing Platform to facilitate the sharing and utilization of water data, information, knowledge, experience and technologies among member countries. On 30 November 2020, with supporting from the Ministry of Water Resources of China, the website for Mekong-Lancang Water Resources Cooperation Information Sharing Platform was officially launched to help better provide information concerning the water resources along the Mekong river in addressing the challenges of climate change and natural disasters as flood and droughts.

What so far we have seen through this trip and the presentation at the moment, it is showing us how China manage water and sharing the experiences what China has achieved on development of water resources, especially contributing to further enhancing the cooperation in the field of Water Resources to address the challenges unseen to ensure the water security and sustainable development of the six countries.

I strongly hope that water resources cooperation will be further deepened and strengthened in the spirit of promoting sustainable development, information sharing to ensure water sustainability and management of flood, droughts and other disasters.