The Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) workshop on water and river basin
management wrapped up on March 22 in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho.
Participants proposed measures to help member
nations shift to a sustainable development model and further Asia-Europe
cooperation in water resource protection, sustainable management of
river basins and green growth.
New approaches for
development and poverty reduction, more effective measures on building
infrastructure and institutions that adapt to climate change, as well as
green technologies in water treatment, and public-private cooperation
were also put forward.
Suggestions for ASEM to
broaden engagement and support for regional and sub-regional cooperation
mechanisms including Mekong and Danube sub-regions on water
management were agreed upon.
Initiated by Vietnam,
the event is the first activity of a joint initiative of six
Mekong–Danube Cooperation Initiative member nations, adopted at the
ninth ASEM Summit in Vientiane, Laos last July to establish a
periodic mechanism called “ASEM dialogue on sustainable development”.
The next meeting will be hosted by Romania in 2014.-VNA