Water Resources Development for Socio-economic Stability and Development Strategy in the Mekong Delta

The Mekong Delta plays a very important role in the socio-economic development strategy of Viet Nam and is a main key for food security. With the large agricultural development potential, in recent years, the Mekong Delta has contributed about 50 % of the total food production of Viet Nam (16.8 million tons in 2000). However, because it is in the low lying Mekong basin, which has many advantages but also a lot of constraints, the Mekong Delta has to face conflicts between socio-economic growth and sustainable development. This is due to its natural condition- upstream hydrology and tidal fluctuations in the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand affect it. The gross area of the Mekong Delta is about 3.94 million ha and its population is about 17 million persons. This is vast flat plain with the average elevation of 0.5-1.5 m. there are 3 major soil groups: acid sulphate soils; saline soils; and alluvium. The annual average rainfall is around 1,700 mm. The annual average discharge of the Mekong river is 13,708 m3/s (volume of 432,6 billion m3), 14,555 m3/s (volume of 459.4 billion m3) and 15,200 m3/s (volume of 480 billion m3) at Kratie, Phnom Penh and the river mouths, respectively. In the Mekong Delta, the flood season starts from June/July and lasts unti