The Mekong River Commission (MRC) instigated this project with the aim of  minimising human suffering and damage to communities, infrastructure, property and agricultural land caused by uncontrolled flooding in the Lower Mekong Basin and to ensure effective regional response plans are in place.

Challenges facing the Me kong River Commission

• disparate databases of information
• inadequate data collection methodologies
• inadequate map making methodologies
• poor communication between government agencies, local authorities and community stakeholders
• ineffective distribution of risk and hazard maps to stakeholders.

NGIS’ solution

NGIS worked with the MRC Secretariat to evaluate both traditional (surveying) and innovative (remote sensing and distributed map access) techniques for improving the delivery of flood hazard and risk maps to various stakeholders throughout the Mekong Basin.

NGIS provided the MRC with technical experts to assist in the improvement of data collection and accessibility through the use of remotely sensed data.

Data sets containing information including flood depth, flood extent, flood duration, land use and population density were collected from a number of agencies (both government and private sector) in Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

NGIS assessed these data sets for usability, identifying any gaps in data matching the vulnerability of a flood prone area and the selection of an appropriate type of flood preparation.

NGIS also assessed the MRC’s existing flood mapping system to determine whether it  could be integrated with the flood forecasting system and the MRC’s early warning mechanism.

Finally, NGIS worked with the MRC to develop a communication plan that would ensure stakeholders received maps and warning information in enough time to take action and minimise flood damage.

Outcomes

The improved data sets and map-making methods have provided the MRC Secretariat with the ability to compile and distribute comprehensive ‘specific risk’ and ‘flood hazard maps’ throughout Cambodia in a timely manner, ultimately saving lives throughout the region.

These improved procedures have also laid the foundation for the future development of a real time flood forecasting system accessible via the MRC web site.

Click here to view or print the Mekong River Success Story ( 151Kb)