The mandate of the NGO Forum on Cambodia is to
"highlight the impact of the development process and economic, social and
political change on ordinary Cambodian people." It does so through
promoting dialogue and networking on the following issues: environment,
development assistance, landmines, promotion of civil society and women's
right. The NGO Forum has established working groups to facilitate the exchange
of information and enhance mutual understanding and collaboration on the above
issues among the NGO community.
The Environment Working Group (EWG) focuses on
environmental issues that are of critical importance to Cambodia and the
region: forests, fishery, Mekong River Development and pesticides. Out of
concern for the environment and Mekong related issues, the EWG commissioned the
Cambodia Mekong Directory in 1997 and
update it in 2000.
The Directory is a compilation of organizations and
projects in Cambodia that focus on environment or in the Cambodia’s Mekong
River Basin to Mekong issues. It provides information about what activities are
being implemented, by whom and where. It is hoped that this information will
strengthen networking capabilities at all levels. Often the greatest weakness
of organizations operating in Cambodia is effectively coordinating and
communicating with each other. It is hoped that this directory will be a first
step to towards solving this problem and thereby strengthening efforts to
address environmental issues in the Mekong River Basin.
Some of the organizations interviewed for this
directory stated that they are not currently working on Mekong related issues,
although they address environmental concerns. Further studies should be
conducted to understand how activities and projects impact the Mekong watershed
in Cambodia, both positively and negatively, to gain a greater understanding of
potential problems and solutions.
The information contained in this directory is far
from complete. More than likely, many organizations conducting important work
on Mekong issues have been inadvertently excluded. Hence, we would be grateful
for any information that would allow us to periodically update the directory.
We apologize in advance for any omissions at this stage.
The NGO Forum and particularly the EWG would like
to thank the many people who helped produce this directory, especially those
who gave their valuable time to share information and provide comments. Karen
Bakker, who prepared the first edition of this directory in a very short time
and Tes Sothy, and the later by Mr. Lay Chanthy who updated this directory,
deserves a big thank you.
We at NGO Forum will consider this effort
worthwhile if it fulfills the purpose of information dissemination, promotion
of provincial and central level networks and enhancement of discussion at all
levels about the current and planned development activities in Cambodia’s
Mekong River Basin.
Mak
Sithirith
Environment
Network Coordinator
The
NGO Forum on Cambodia
Phnom
Penh
The
NGO Forum on Cambodia consists of organizations largely focused on humanitarian
assistance to Cambodia. Its function is to advocate on issues of concern to the
Cambodian people and local and international NGOs working in Cambodia.
The Forum focuses on five areas, each with a
corresponding working group: civil society; development issues; landmines;
gender; and the environment.
The Environment Working Group was formed in July
1995 and merged with the Cooperation Committee for Cambodia's Environment
Sector Group in early 1996. The EWG meets on the third Friday of each month (8
a.m., CCC building) to exchange information and track several important issues:
forestry, fisheries, Mekong River basin development, and pesticides. The EWG
meetings are open, and have a diverse representation, that has included
Cambodian and international NGOs, various UN agencies, Ministry of Environment,
the Cambodia National Mekong Committee, and bilateral and multilateral donors
and projects.
Given the recent and growing interest of bilateral
and multilateral donors in Mekong Basin development in Cambodia, and the rapid
pace with which development is proceeding in other lower Mekong basin
countries, the Environment Working Group decided in early 1997 to commission a
Cambodia Mekong Directory and update it in November 2000. The organizations,
institutions, and programms to be included in this directory consist of a
project or at least an activity that directly or indirectly related to the
Mekong or/and Environmental Issues of Mekong River and Tonle Sap Lake or its
catchment areas. The purpose of the
directory is:
·
To provide
information on current and planned environment-related activities concerning
the Mekong Issues in Cambodia, including research programs, aid and development
projects of International NGOs, Local NGOs, Government Institutions, and
multilateral and bilateral Agencies;
·
To assist in
networking, primarily between different members of the target audience; and
·
To assist the NGO
Forum, and particularly the Environment Working Group, in defining its role and
future work with respect to Mekong issues and advocacy.
The categories of
organisations in the directory:
·
Environment
Working Group members;
·
Organisations
with an environment-related mandate; and,
·
Potential
members of a Cambodia Mekong network.
The intended
audience includes members of the Environment Working Group, INGOs, and
LNGOs working on or interested in environmental issues in Cambodia. Concerned
ministries of the Royal Government of Cambodia and bilateral and multilateral
institutions are a secondary audience.
The Mekong
Watershed or Mekong Basin, for
the purposes of this directory, includes the Mekong, Tonle Sap, and Bassac
rivers; the Tonle Sap Lake; and their tributaries and watersheds. This covers
approximately 90% of Cambodia's territory (see map).
For the purposes of this directory, an emphasis was
placed on environment-related activities
concerning communities (both human and non-human) that would be impacted by
Mekong development. Organisations with diverse activities -- waterfowl studies,
community forestry, community fishery alternative technology, environmental
education and awareness ecologically sustainable agriculture, dolphin
conservation and natural resource management – are also included in the directory.
The directory includes groups whose work has an impact on the riparian
environment and those communities affected by development in these areas.
Groups that have expressed an interest in environmental issues or intend to
work on environmental issues in the future were also included.
The environment of any river basin is
interconnected with all activities
within the watershed. An artificial division between 'environmental' and
'non-environmental' activities may not be the most useful approach to the sustainable
development of the Mekong. In this respect, the directory gives very limited
information, which needs to be supplemented from a variety of other sources;
appendixes have been included which provide additional information and
contacts, both national and regional.
Due to limited research and production time, this
directory may have inadvertently excluded organisations and programs, which fit
the categories described on the previous page. We would encourage any such
groups to contact the NGO Forum for inclusion in the next edition.
There is a
big potential in Cambodia for popular support for environmental issues and
protection. The environment – and collective livelihood security – are good
issues which villages can come together and cooperate on. It is very important
to work at a very local level to mobilise support for any environmental
campaign or activity; the involvement of local people is critical.
-NGO
worker
Dams, and
other infrastructure developments in Cambodia will go ahead. They are important
for Cambodia’s development. What is important is that we have sustainable
development. NGOs need to engage the government and other institutions in
constructive dialogue.
-government
advisor
NGOs’ best
role is to promote awareness and work and advocate for populations that depend
on natural resources for their livelihoods. Small scale development activities
will not be effective with regards to opposing Mekong development; NGO advocacy
must be political and attention-raising. NGOs need to promote the kind of
activism that has been reasonably successful in Thailand.
-Consultant
to a bilaterally funded project.
Should the Environment Working Group coordinate or
advocate? Should NGO Forum concentrate on awareness-raising at the local and
national level or on advocacy and information-gathering at the national and
international level? Should the Forum opt for a more confrontational strategy,
or encourage a more cooperative process emphasising dialogue and inclusion?
These questions about the role of the NGO Forum
were raised by many of those interviewed for this directory. Many NGOs
emphasised the importance of information dissemination, through translation of
existing information into Khmer and through non-written media such as radio.
They emphasised the importance of awareness-raising with local communities via
local NGOs. Although environmental awareness is at a relatively low level in
Cambodia, environmental and natural resources were seen as natural focal points
around which communities could cohere. Efforts to coordinate with LNGOs and to
disseminate information to people likely to be affected by planned developments
were recommended as a priority for the Forum.
Other informants emphasised the importance of
information-gathering and liaison with government, aid agencies, and investors;
engaging other stakeholders in dialogue about sustainable development was
identified as a priority. It was felt that the NGO Forum should advocate for
open, participatory processes and engage major investors such as the ADB in
dialogue. Raising awareness of alternative development models, advocating for
detailed socio-economic and environmental impact assessments before the initiation of dam projects,
and providing alternative information about specific dam sites were recommended
strategies. Several informants noted that the Ministry of Environment was very
sympathetic to NGOs and open to cooperation and recommended building a relationship
with the Ministry.
Only a few NGOs recommended a confrontational,
high-visibility advocacy strategy. LNGOs did not generally view vocal
opposition to government projects as appropriate, given the limited history of
the Cambodian government working with NGOs, lobby groups, and the media. There
has been a rapid growth in the number of LNGOs since 1992; many of these
organisations are locally-based, diffuse, and under-resourced. Many of these
organisations felt the need for more information about the issues before
engaging the government in dialogue. With more information, working in
conjunction with government to anticipate and mitigate negative impacts of
development, and working to ‘make sure the government lives up to its promises’
were identified as NGO roles.
The majority of informants felt that NGO Forum
should first focus on information dissemination rather than advocacy, although
both activities were thought to be important. All informants identified a need
for background information on planned and ongoing development projects, the
potential impacts of various projects, and critical issues concerning the
Mekong River basin. Many also warned of the dangers of an INGO-dominated Mekong
Network, and recommended raising awareness to create a Cambodian constituency.
The majority viewpoint was that
information-gathering and dissemination should be the first task for the NGO
Forum and that these activities should be focused on local communities and
NGOs. We hope that this directory will be a first step in this task.