Last week, over 190 representatives from different interest groups including the Mekong River Commission’s (MRC) Secretariat, member countries, development partners, research institutes, media, private sector, and national and international NGOs attended the MRC’s 2nd regional stakeholder forum on the Pak Beng dam in Vientiane in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR).
MRC 2nd Regional Stakeholder Forum, Laos
The main emphasis of the meeting was to hear progress and responses on concerns raised in the 1st Regional Stakeholder Forum held in February 2017 and especially to learn more about the technical assessment findings from the MRC experts on various key topics including hydrology, navigation, water quality, fisheries and socio-economic issues of the planned Pak Beng dam.
The Regional Stakeholder meeting was the second forum this year as part of the Procedures for Notification, Prior Consultation and Agreement, or the PNPCA process, initiated by the MRC to allow the four member countries, the Lao PDR, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia to raise any concerns about the planned Pak Beng dam. The forum illustrates regional engagement in the basin, especially about dam planning. Dam construction is thriving in this region where hydropower is seen as a major source of income through revenues and as a source of renewable energy.
The Pak Beng dam will be the third mainstream dam in the Lower Mekong Basin after the Xayabouri and Don Sahong dams which are currently under construction in the Lao PDR. The Pak Beng dam will be located in northern Laos, in Oundomxay Province and has a planned capacity of 912 MW. The PNPCA process for the Pak Beng dam started at the end of 2016.
Please click here to read the full “Pak Beng Consultation Process Improved, But To What End?” article in the Mekong Eye by Griffith Asia Institute Adjunct Research Fellow, Dr Andrea Haefner.
