Opening the meeting, Minister Ha hailed Vietnam’s efforts to improve climate resilient and sustainable development of the Mekong Delta region. He called for increased cooperation and responsibilities of countries in the river basin and stricter management and use of the Mekong River. “We have seen increased roles and functions of the Mekong River through  diplomatic activities by upstream countries, technical consultation on appropriate use of water through hydro power technical solutions on the Mekong’s mainstream, and information update in order to propose comprehensive solutions for arising issues, ” said Minister Ha. 

Minister Ha requested that the Vietnam Mekong River Commission’s plenary meeting give priority to reaching consensus on a plan and specific measures to successfully complete the Commission’s working program in 2019.