Suchergebnisse

The Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) and the Agreement on the Cooperation for the Sustainable Development of the Mekong River Basin are two of the most important transboundary water treaties signed between member states that have a history of disputes and wars. In the case of India and Pakistan, voices to scrap the IWT in both countries are made chiefly because of their day-to-day bitter relationships. The treaty nevertheless remains in effect. The Mekong River Basin countries have had sour relationships in the past, and even after the agreement was signed in 1995 some political differences and disputes between them have remained. In both the Indus and Mekong basins, China is an important upper riparian. This article discusses the IWT and Agreement among the Mekong basin countries and examines the convergences and divergences between the two. It then analyses the role of China, as an upper basin to Indus and Mekong.

AbstractThe paper analyses the security dimension of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) by taking into account traditional as well as non-traditional security issues. The Greater Mekong Subregion, which was established in 1992 at the initiative of the ADB, emerged after the Cold War in the wake of the so-called new regionalism as one of the growth triangles within ASEAN. Participating countries/regions are China's Yunnan province, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. The article places the discussion of the Greater Mekong Subregion within the debate on post-Cold War sub-regionalism and sets out to discuss the development of regionalism in the Mekong Basin. The article shows how economic cooperation is followed in the pursuit of security and stability in a formerly conflict-ridden area and assesses the relevance of the GMS towards the issue of conflict reduction in the Mekong Basin.

The Mekong plays a vital role in the countries of the Lower Mekong Basin (LMB): Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. (Burma is not within the basin). Despite the environmental costs of China's completed dams and the river clearances to aid navigation being limited so far, this will change once China has five dams in operation. And the costs exacted by those dams will be magnified if the proposed mainstream dams below China are built, particularly at Don Sahong and Sambor. In all four LMB countries the Mekong is a source of irrigation. In Vietnam's Mekong Delta the annual pattern of flood and retreat insure that this region contributes over 50% of agriculture's contribution to the country's GDP. For all four LMB countries the Mekong and its associated systems, particularly Cambodia's Great Lake (Tonle Sap), are a bountiful source of fish, with the annual value of the catch conservatively valued at US$2 billion. More than 70% of the Cambodian population's annual animal protein comes from the river's fish. Eighty per cent of the Mekong's fish species are migratory, some travelling many hundreds of kilometres between spawning and reaching adulthood. Overall, eight out of 10 persons living in the LMB depend on the river for sustenance, either in terms of wild fish captured in the river or through both large and small-scale agriculture and horticulture.

The Mekong plays a vital role in the countries of the Lower Mekong Basin (LMB): Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. (Burma is not within the basin). Despite the environmental costs of China's completed dams and the river clearances to aid navigation being limited so far, this will change once China has five dams in operation. And the costs exacted by those dams will be magnified if the proposed mainstream dams below China are built, particularly at Don Sahong and Sambor. In all four LMB countries the Mekong is a source of irrigation. In Vietnam's Mekong Delta the annual pattern of flood and retreat insure that this region contributes over 50% of agriculture's contribution to the country's GDP. For all four LMB countries the Mekong and its associated systems, particularly Cambodia's Great Lake (Tonle Sap), are a bountiful source of fish, with the annual value of the catch conservatively valued at US$2 billion. More than 70% of the Cambodian population's annual animal protein comes from the river's fish. Eighty per cent of the Mekong's fish species are migratory, some travelling many hundreds of kilometres between spawning and reaching adulthood. Overall, eight out of 10 persons living in the LMB depend on the river for sustenance, either in terms of wild fish captured in the river or through both large and small-scale agriculture and horticulture.

"Presents a contemporary analysis of the impact of China's rise on the Mekong Region at a critical period of Southeast Asian history. As the most populated country and the second largest economy in the world, China has become an increasingly influential player in global and regional affairs. Economic ties between China and her southern neighbors are particularly strong. Yet relations between China and the Mekong region are complex and embedded in other socio-cultural and political issues. China's accelerated growth, increasing economic footprint, global search for energy, natural resources, and food security, and the rapid pace of its military modernization have created a wide range of new challenges for smaller countries in Southeast Asia. These new challenges both encourage and limit cooperation between China and the emerging ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). This book pays close attention to some of these challenges with particular focus on the impact of Chinese investment, trade, foreign aid, and migration"--

This research investigates cluster development in the area called the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), which consists of Thailand, the People's Republic of China (PRC), the Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Myanmar, the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), Cambodia, and Vietnam. The study utilized Porter's competitiveness theory and the cluster mapping approach to analyze the competitiveness of the region. The data collection consists of interviews, focus groups, and the analysis of secondary data. The findings identify some evidence of cluster development in the GMS; however, there is no clear indication of collaboration among the components in the clusters. GMS clusters tend to be stand-alone. The clusters in Vietnam, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Cambodia tend to be labor intensive, whereas the clusters in Thailand and the PRC (Yunnan) have the potential to successfully develop into innovative clusters. The collaboration and integration among the clusters in the GMS area are promising, though it could take a long time. The most likely relationship between the GMS countries could be, for example, suppliers of the low-end, labor-intensive products will be located in the low income countries such as Myanmar, Lao PDR, and Cambodia, and these countries will be providing input materials for innovative clusters in the middle income countries such as Thailand and the PRC.

Although the increasing influence of global civil society has been noted in environmental politics and this phenomenon is synonymous with global environmental governance, some questions remain: where does this change in mentality originate and through what forces, how are these forces motivated, and how do they continue to motivate the "environmental agenda"? A primary factor is the establishment of transnational institutions that stimulates the participation of global civil society in global environmental governance and how this participation has diminished government authority by reinforcing local loyalties with their viewpoints concerning the environment. Thus, the debate becomes how the interpretation of global environmental governance and "top-down" approaches affects and is affected by local practices in civil society. This study examines the growing importance of global civil society to the Lancang/Mekong fish catch- the world's largest inland fishery-and the dam project disputes concerning the Lancang/Mekong River. The following analysis concerns the influence of the rising global civil society on the effectiveness of these environmental governance entities. The analysis indicates that participation of the global civil society in the Lancang/Mekong dam decision-making process concerning the fisheries does not replace the traditional mechanism of governmental governance. Instead, the growing influence of the global civil society is compatible with operations of the governmental governance mechanism, complementing the function of global environmental governance. (Issues Stud/GIGA)

The Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) includes Cambodia, the People's Republic of China (specifically Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region), the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam. In 1992, with assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and building on their shared histories and cultures, the six countries launched a program of subregional economic cooperation—the GMS Program. Over the past 20 years, the GMS Program has achieved substantial success in improving regional connectivity through investments of $15 billion as well as more than 180 technical assistance projects. With support of ADB and other development partners, the program is helping the participating countries achieve the Millennium Development Goals and balanced growth through increased connectivity, improved competitiveness, and a greater sense of community.

The Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) includes Cambodia, the People's Republic of China (specifically Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region), the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam. In 1992, with assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and building on their shared histories and cultures, the six countries launched a program of subregional economic cooperation—the GMS Program. Over the past 20 years, the GMS Program has achieved substantial success in improving regional connectivity through investments of $15 billion as well as more than 180 technical assistance projects. With support of ADB and other development partners, the program is helping the participating countries achieve the Millennium Development Goals and balanced growth through increased connectivity, improved competitiveness, and a greater sense of community.

Since the dawn of the industrial revolution, and the ushering in of an era of global economic relations, the United States and Europe have been the core poles of economic power. However, China along with India are increasingly challenging the traditional economic hegemony. An issue of great importance is how this shift in the global economic balance of power will affect developing economies and the transition economies of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), which are located in China's backyard and deeply integrated into its economy through regional supply chains. This volume examines the relationship between transition economies and the rise of China through presenting empirical case studies from the GMS. In doing so, it offers insights into the effect of China on developing countries in general, and offers practical policy directions for the place-specific economies of the GMS