The main messages from the presentations were that water governance in the Mekong region faces challenges due to complicated multi-layered issues involving land use, water resources, development, and global changes. These issues are interrelated and impact local livelihoods, risks, resilience and adaptation. There are many stakeholders to consider, but decision making processes still tend to be limited to authority groups, which can lead to conflicts and short-term thinking over resources and environment. Researchers can help push for more common and inclusive decision making that considers alternatives and gets input from various stakeholder groups. Mixed research methods are needed to address the complex water governance challenges and different perspectives in the region.

1. Panel 11: Research challenges in
water governance:
institutions, environment and
livelihoods.
The Synthesis for eight
presentations

2. The synthesis questions:
• What were the main messages from the presentations
on Research challenges in water governance:
institutions, environment and livelihoods?
• What do these main messages tell us about water
governance in the Mekong as a whole?
• How are institutions addressing the phenomenon
water governance?
• What are the main drivers for decision making
regarding water governance related institutional
arrangement, sustainable environment and
livelihoods?

3. I. Issues
• Basic resources used:-land use for ag., water
for fish raising( led to livelihoods and food
security)
• Development:-eco-tourism
• Economic development
• Deals with global changes:-climate, socio-
economic, political, cultural, which make the
issues complicated/ multi-layered.
-All issues are inter-connected.
-Livelihoods lead to risks, resilience, and
adaptation to changes.

4. II. Stakeholders: Local users
• Multi-stakeholders : Who are they? :How to
define them? : How to assess and analyze for
their perspectives?
• : Is the stakeholders’ matrix adequate?
“multi-stakeholders” if blurred , it is only as
“various groups”
when use “multi-stakeholders”, it needs to define
social relationship among key stakeholders, which
is crucial to understand power structure among
different actors.
: How to get contact with them?
: How to assess and analyze their perspectives?
• Can stakeholders matrix lead to power structure?
This will have impact on “Institutions”.

5. III. Institutions
• Necessary for Policy Analysis
• In 8 cases, all mentioned institutional
structure (vertically or horizontally).
• Functions and process (for decision making)
:- various groups of people involvement,
:- horizontally structured institutions.
These will facilitate common decision making

6. IV. Decision Making Process
• In all papers, decision making process is still
limited to the authorities groups.
• This will lead to ineffective decision making
:- conflicts
:- “short term benefit”
:- deterioration of resources and environment
Key Challenges for the Mekong
Problems in water governance

7. Role of the researchers
• Put effort to push forwards to Common
Decision Making Process,
• Common Agreement of various groups to find
alternatives/options

8. V. Methodologies
• Mixed methods to deal with complex issues
and various groups.