This Scoping Report was produced through cooperation between the Viet Nam National Mekong Committee (VNMC) and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) in reflecting a shared understanding that improved water resource management was considered as the key to sustainable development. The report provides a wealth of information to capture the link between water and economic growth in the Mekong Delta context and identifies the policy options which would support green growth in the Delta, from a conceptual viewpoint. It also provides an assessment tool which can prioritize green growth options and facilitate preparatory works for green growth policies in the Mekong Delta.
The Mekong Delta is home to approximately 17 million people, or 20% of the Vietnamese population. The Delta is one of the most productive areas in the world, accounting for 50% of rice production, 65% of aquaculture production and 70% of fruits of Viet Nam. The sustainability and prosperity of the Delta, however, are being undermined due to natural and man-made challenges; in response, GGGI’s water and green growth project aims to develop and apply a systemic approach to water resources management to counter and mitigate the negative impact. The project starts with identifying the water and green growth opportunities on a ‘Four-Step Approach’ base consisting of the following four activities: (a) stocktaking; (b) development of the ranking methodology; (c) assessment; and (d) analysis. The identification would be followed by the operationalization of the process and finally, the same participatory and multi-stakeholder process could be replicated at the Mekong Delta regional level (including Cambodia) and whole basin level, reaching to support upstream planning and create synergies with downstream sustainability.