Notes: !: Not necessarily corresponds exactly to official indicators of SDG6; 1: Water productivity used as proxy indicator and does not correspond to proposed indicator for the Target 6.4; 2: Only considers the MRB; 3: IWRM is integrated in national water/river basin policy as well as MRC Basin Action Plan; 4: Community participation are common but not necessarily mandatory or effectively implemented
Foremost condition for that could be a close collaboration among agencies, such as planning bodies, in four countries dealing with SDGs. In fact, the VNR submitted by all four countries highlights on the strengthening cooperation on water resources through MRC for implementing water related SDGs (RTG, 2017; GoLaoPDR, 2018; SRV, 2018; KOC, 2019). In fact, Cambodia’s VNR credit MRC for the improvement in surface water quality (KOC, 2019). So MRC as a common platform could be further capitalized to explore where collaboration brings higher synergies. As opposed to embracing multiple reforms at once, MRC can adopt a pragmatic approach of mainstreaming SDG planning in a step‐wise manner and transform itself as a change agent to support implementation of water related targets in an integrated manner. This could be initiated in those low hanging areas where progresses are already in good shape (such as WASH targets, water related disasters) but need extra effort not only to retain momentum but also accelerate improvements such as improving WASH in rural areas. Another entry point could be collaboration on monitoring and evaluation such as enhanced partnership on implementing MRC Indicator Framework which already complement most of SDGs water related indicators. Considering the existence of policy framework and needed institutional setup prioritising IWRM or IRBM in each country, SDGs could act as a leverage for upscaling implementation. MRC could set up a mechanism for countries to share their progress on water related SDGs (as relevant along with other SDGs) before submitting to UN. Obviously it helps countries to identify areas for transboundary cooperation (as relevant to Target 6.5), but more importantly MRC then could fill the information gaps relating to the LMB that are difficult to assimilate or need a collective response. After establishing a collaborative mechanism on SDGs, the MRC could facilitate to address those issues incurring high trade‐offs such as climate change, protection of aquatic ecosystem or more thorny ones on water sharing and construction of upstream dams. Solving these issues by building path for collaboration could be a unique advantage MRC has at this moment to show to the whole world. Given the global scope of SDGs the implication of success cases will be very valuable. So the readiness and first mover advantage that MRC possess could be best utilized to turn challenges into opportunities for the implementation of water related SDGs in an integrated manner.
2.6. SUMMARY AND WAYS FORWARD
SDGs offer a new opportunity to operationalize integrated approaches of water resources management. The framing of SDGs and complex interlinkages also support an integrated framing to capitalize on synergies while avoiding negative interactions during the implementation. This chapter examined the relevancy of integrated approaches for co‐implementing water‐related SDG targets by highlighting the process of SDG formations and its governance, the nature of interlinkages with water and highlighting a need for an integrated approach. This chapter elaborates how an integrated river basin approach can offer a practical way to operationalize integrated approach of water‐related SDGs implementation by describing an example of the Lower Mekong Basin. The key recommendation from the chapter is that a river basin approach could provide a leverage for accelerating implementation of SDGs and a river basin strategy for SDGs implementation is highly desirable to address the emerging water resources management challenges. However, concerted efforts and policy changes will be necessary to reorient the focus on river basin approach (including transboundary basins) as a unit for SDGs implementation.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
JSPS Kaken‐hi project (Grant Number “16H02748”) and SATREPS Project (Establishment of Environmental Conservation Platform of Tonle Sap Lake) for financial support and stakeholders/officials/researcher in Lao PDR, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam and MRC who provided information and resources for the research.
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