Responding to transboundary water challenges in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta: In search of institutional fit

Abstract

The operations of large hydropower dams in the Mekong basin, while posing detrimental transboundary effects downstream, are not fully recognised in Vietnamese government policies, especially at the regional scale. This study adopts the concept of institutional fit to investigate policy gaps in addressing the transboundary water challenges characterised by falling floodwater flows and accelerating saltwater intrusion in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. Based on interviews with key stakeholders (including central and provincial government officials, environmental experts, and academics) as well as desk reviews of policy documents, we argue that, while the transboundary water repercussions are increasingly evident on the ground, they are not adequately factored in water policies and strategic development planning for the delta. This study suggests that failure to incorporate co-evolving effects of climate change and Mekongwide hydropower dynamics into local water governance will cause institutional constraints to tackle water stressors (too much or too little water) over the long term.Achieving institutional fit will therefore help align the national water policy framework with local development strategies and reduce policy-practice gaps at the delta scale.To this end, two key aspects need to be considered: first, how, and in which forms, innovative management decisions and water governance policies can be effectively undertaken towards securing the living delta and its resilience to present and future environmental risks; and second, how reframed water policy and development agendas can holistically capture and resolve the transboundary hydrological problems, while leveraging the Vietnamese government's policy engagement at higher levels to address related impacts.

Progress toward resilient and sustainable water management in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta

“…The delta's intertropical location means both flow and sediment regimes are marked by a strong seasonality. The monsoon climate drives two clear‐cut seasons: a dry season from December to May and a wet season from June to November (Tran & Tortajada, 2022). The rivers of the delta are estimated overall to discharge approximately 300–550 km 3 of water and between 40 and 167 million tons of sediment annually (Darby et al, 2016; Kondolf et al, 2014; Van Binh, Kantoush, Saber, et al, 2020; Van, Popescu, et al, 2012) (Box 1).…”

Twenty-five rice research priorities for sustainable rice systems by 2050

“…Policies and equitable governance support agriculture in achieving diverse objectives, offering the opportunity to minimize losses and maximize synergies across scales. For example, persistent transboundary policy-practice mismatches in the international Mekong Delta's management have led to lower agricultural production and poor water management (Sithirith, 2021; Thu & Wehn, 2016; Tran & Tortajada, 2022). Effective policies must integrate knowledge from multiple fields and scales (Sterner et al, 2019).…”

Transboundary environmental governance: Emerging themes and lessons from Southeast Asia

“…Our authors remain mindful, however, that the "participatory paradigm" (Bäckstrand, 2003, p. 24), like sustainable development and environmental democracy, has been applied to the full spectrum of The degree of participation at different scales of transboundary environmental governance regimes is influenced by whose ecological knowledge is prioritized in policy choices and legislation. Tran and Tortjada (2022) take the policy-practice interface as their entry point for examining upstream-downstream disconnects in determining the knowledge that is included in, and excluded from, policy documents and decision-making processes in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta.…”

“…The degree of participation at different scales of transboundary environmental governance regimes is influenced by whose ecological knowledge is prioritized in policy choices and legislation. Tran and Tortjada (2022) take the policy‐practice interface as their entry point for examining upstream‐downstream disconnects in determining the knowledge that is included in, and excluded from, policy documents and decision‐making processes in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. They show how the lack of ecological knowledge about the transboundary impacts of hydropower dam projects in policy documentation not only compromises the ability of riverine communities to adapt their own livelihoods to these hydrosocial transformations, but also the capacity of the Vietnamese government to effectively plan for inclusive forms of sustainable development and coordinate resilience‐building strategies at the national and regional scales.…”