Thailand will host the first summit of the Mekong River Commission (MRC) in April, according to the Foreign Office of the Government’s Public Relations Department (PRD).

The summit will gather together regional prime ministers, other political leaders, the MRC’s dialogue partners, including China and Myanmar, its development partners and a range of experts in the field of cross-border water resources management.

It will help to step up regional cooperation amongst member countries, other upstream countries, local authorities, the private sector and other stakeholders.

As an event that marks the MRC’s 15 th anniversary, the summit will reaffirm at the highest level, the political commitment of member countries to the MRC mission.

It also aims to consolidate the continued good relationships that the organisation has with its dialogue partners, including China and Myanmar and discuss a range of challenges and opportunities currently facing the Mekong Basin .

High on the agenda will be the long-term effects of climate change and the role played by river basin organisations when striving to reach Millennium Development Goals, particularly measures to reduce poverty.

To “set the stage” for the summit from an international perspective, and to highlight the challenges facing international river basin organisations such as the MRC, a two-day international conference will precede the summit.

The conference, themed “Transboundary Water Resources Management in a Changing World”, will offer an opportunity for representatives from the Mekong , other international river basins in the world, international organisations and water professionals from around the region to present, discuss and share their experiences and concerns. They are also expected to recommend ways of addressing the issues through improved joint water resources development and management.

The Mekong River Basin is defined by the land area surrounding all the streams and rivers that flow into the Mekong River. This includes parts of China, Myanmar and Vietnam, nearly one third of Thailand and most of Cambodia and Laos .

The MRC was established in 1995 by an agreement between the governments of the Lower Mekong Basin, including Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam./.