SUMERNET partners engage policymakers and contribute to key messages at the 2nd Asia Pacific Water Summit 2013

SEI-Asia and SUMERNET convened two technical workshops in the 2nd Asia Pacific Water Summit (APWS) in Chiang Mai, 16-20 May 2013, that highlighted the theme of “Water Security and Water-related Disaster Challenges: Leadership and Commitment”.

In response to the request from Royal Thai Government, SEI Asia and SUMERNET convened 2 technical workshops within the sub-theme of “Economic, Food and Water Security” and “Water Risks and Resilience” and jointly organized with International Water Management Institute (IWMI) on 17 May 2013. The technical workshops was conducted within the 2nd Asia Pacific Water Summit (APWS) in Chiang Mai, 16-20 May 2013, which highlights theme “Water Security and Water-related Disaster Challenges: Leadership and Commitment”.

(cc) 2013 Photo by Agus Nugroho - WRR2 Plenary, from left: Dr. Albert Salamanca (SEI), Dr. Paul Pavelic (IWMI), Dr. Nguyen Duy Can (SUMERNET), Mr. Ngo Cong Chinh (SUMERNET), Ms. Clara Rellensmann (UNESCO)

In SEI-IWMI-SUMERNET-led session within “Water Risks and Resilience” (WRR) sub-theme, entitled “Reducing water risk and increasing resilience with insights from the Mekong countries”, highlights multi-dimensional intersection between flood and other elements such as migration, socio-political relations, ecosystems, livelihoods, health, vulnerability and resilience, effective communication to improve water-related risks and uncertainties among multi-stakeholders. This session also highlights the key findings from SUMERNET projects on vulnerability assessment of livelihoods in lower Mekong basin and communicating water-related climate change risks.

This water risk and resilience session (WRR2) was facilitated by Dr. Louis Lebel from USER and involving the following panelists and topics:

• Dr. Albert Salamanca (SEI) on “Politics, Governance, Experiences and Responses to Flooding in ASEAN – A Case Study of Selected Villages in Lao PDR”
• Dr. Paul Pavelic (IWMI) on “Blending the old with the new: A fresh approach to addressing recurring floodwater impacts and improving livelihoods in the Chao Phraya River Basin”
• Dr. Nguyen Duy Can (Can Tho University / SUMERNET) on “Application of livelihood vulnerability index to assess risks from flood vulnerability and climate variability - A case study in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam”
• Mr. Ngo Cong Chinh (AMDI / SUMERNET) on “Communicating Water-Related Climate Change Risks to Improve Local Adaptation in the Deltas of the Mekong Region”
• Ms. Clara Rellensmann (UNESCO) on “Developing a Flood Risk Reduction Plan for the World Heritage Site of Ayutthaya”

The complete slides from the presentations can be accessed here.

The session was run effectively and drew much attention from participants attending APWS since issues of flood disaster and its impacts have been taken as one of the central issue in APWS, especially when Thailand experienced major flood in 2011. Approximately 30 and more participants attended WRR2 session with active exchanges of opinion and questions among panelists and participants.

Among the issues highlighted during the discussion were the ideas of managing the water excess in mitigating the effects of drought season, involving community in flood prevention and devising compensation mechanism for increased engagements, and addressing heritage sites in the vulnerability assessment, as the heritage sites are among most vulnerable when flood disaster occurs.

Five key messages were also drawn as inputs for policy makers:

• Floods and flood-related disasters have been governed as if they were purely technical, engineering, challenges separate from other processes of development; but they are not. Dealing with institutional fragmentation, poor coordination, and lack participation are often as crucial as new investments in dikes, drains, diversions, dams or pumps.
• Vulnerability to floods often differs among social groups, for example, with respect to wealth, gender and ethnicity. Vulnerability indices can help decision-makers identify vulnerable groups and drivers of vulnerability that should be targeted in programs. While successful risk communication does not guarantee people’s behavior change and adoption of good practices it is often a practical starting point.
• Proper consideration should be given to the vulnerability of cultural heritage sites in addition to conventional concerns with homes, farms and factories.
• Floods also bring benefits; institutional and physical interventions should take these into account. For example, significant volumes of floodwater reaching the sea can be harvested without major impacts on existing users through managed aquifer recharge.
• Improvements in flood governance are needed and are achievable by: Expanding public participation, building adaptive capacities at multiple levels, integrating disaster management into development planning, linking knowledge and practice, and prioritizing the disadvantaged and most vulnerable.

Beside those two sessions, SEI also actively involves in other sessions, such as session on “Framework for Action on Water in Green Growth in Support of Economic, Food, and Water Security at Local, National, and Regional Levels” (EFWS1) convened by FAO and UNESCAP. In this session, Dr. Eric Kemp-Benedict (SEI Asia Centre Director) presents on the perspective of Green Growth, whereas Dr. Chayanis Krittasudthacheewa (SEI Asia Deputy Centre Director) presents the key messages from EFWS2 for considerations and comments.

SEI welcomes inquiries from the external parties and media on SUMERNET work and topics being discussed and presented in the 2nd APWS Technical Workshops 2013. For inquiries, please contact Agus Nugroho ( agus.nugroho@sei-international.org).