Mekong River Commission

Phnom Penh hosts 10th MRC Council Meeting of Cabinet ministers from Mekong region

MRC No.15/03
Phnom Penh, 28 November 2003

 

The Prime Minister of Cambodia, H.E. Samdech Hun Sen, will open the 10th Council meeting of the Mekong River Commission in Phnom Penh on Saturday, 29 November at the Intercontinental Hotel.

The MRC Council meeting is a two-day annual event that brings together Cabinet ministers from the four Mekong River Commission member countries to consider and approve plans for ongoing cooperation within the river basin area shared by Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam.

Among the plans to be presented this year is a US$22-million, six-year programme for navigation development on the Mekong. The navigation programme will consist of five components: socio-economic analysis and regional waterborne transport planning; strengthening the legal framework for cross-border navigation, traffic safety and environmental sustainability; information, promotion and coordination; and institutional development.

Chairmanship of the MRC Council rotates annually. The MRC Council is chaired this year by the Cambodian Minister of Water Resources and Meteorology, H.E. Mr Lim Kean Hor.

Over 70 delegates will attend the MRC Council meeting. The Cambodian delegation to the Council meeting will be headed by Minister for Environment H.E. Dr Mok Mareth. The Lao delegation will be headed by H.E. Mr Somphong Mongkhonvilay, Minister to the Prime Minister's Office. The Thai delegation will be headed by Mr Parinya Nutalaya, the Vice-Minister of Natural Resources and Environment. The Vietnamese delegation will be headed by H.E. Dr Pham Hong Giang, Vice-Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. Observers from UN-ESCAP, UNDP, the ASEAN Secretariat, the Asian Development Bank and selected government departments will also attend the two-day meeting.

Six Cambodian Cabinet ministers will be present in total at the opening, including the Senior Minister for Foreign Affairs H.E. Mr Hor Nam Hong, Minister of Industry H. E. Mr Suy Sen, Minister of Planning H.E. Mr Chhay Thorn and Minister of Agriculture H.E. Mr Chan Sarun. Other senior officials from the Cambodian Cabinet will also be present at the opening.

Since the last Council meeting a year ago, the MRC received funding commitments of around US$12.25 million, to be spent over a time frame of one to five years. Most current programmes began operation in the year 2001 with multi-year funding.

The MRC work programme for the year 2004 requires a total budget of US$22.2 million. Almost three-quarters of this budget has been secured and the MRC is currently seeking another US$5.6 million to cover the remaining cost of planned activities. A meeting with the MRC's Donor Consultative Group, representing over 15 international donors, will be held back-to-back with the Council Meeting on Monday 1 December.

Members of the press are invited to cover the opening session at the Intercontinental Hotel, Phnom Penh, on Saturday 29 November from 8 am to 10 am. All visitors MUST be seated by 8.15 am.

For more information about the 10th Council meeting, contact:

Ms Delia Paul, Communications Officer,
Mekong River Commission Secretariat.
Phone: local - (012)807-979 and
international (855-12)807-979;
fax: (855-23)720-972
email: delia@mrcmekong.org

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