Managing Water Scarcity in Asia and the Pacific - GCP/RAS/007/AUL

Managing Water Scarcity in Asia and the Pacific - GCP/RAS/007/AUL

Copyright licence

Year of publication 2025

Place of publication Rome, Italy ;

Pages 2

Publisher FAO ;

Product type Project

Category Programme / project report

Full item page

Synopsis (short abstract) The Asia Pacific Region is faced by a worsening water crisis driven by population growth, industrialization, urbanization, climate change and pollution, with agriculture, the largest water user, particularly vulnerable. Cambodia experiences seasonal shortages and governance gaps despite abundant resources; Lao People’s Democratic Republic, while rich in hydropower, struggles with domestic scarcity, weak irrigation and environmental impacts. Thailand suffers from intensifying droughts that threaten rural livelihoods, food security and industry; and Viet Nam faces overexploitation, saline intrusion and weak coordination despite reforms. In response to this, the Water Scarcity Programme (WSP) was launched to help countries to maintain water consumption within sustainable limits while preparing them for a productive food-secure future with less water. This project, as part of Australia’s contribution to the wider Asia-Pacific WSP, focused on strengthening water governance in Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Thailand and Viet Nam, while simultaneously advancing regional cooperation and knowledge sharing.

Language English

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Project

Factsheet

Improving the Management of Water Scarcity in the Asia–Pacific Region - MTF/RAS/400/EWL 2025

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The Asia–Pacific region faces growing water scarcity due to population growth, industrialization, urbanization, and climate change. This scarcity affects agriculture, economic development, and water security, with challenges varying from absolute shortages in arid zones to seasonal scarcity in monsoonal areas.In Indonesia, water scarcity is driven by uneven resource distribution, groundwater overextraction, pollution, and deforestation, with severe impacts on agriculture and urban areas. In Thailand, droughts, climate change, and competing demands intensify water scarcity, affecting agriculture, livelihoods, and the economy. In Viet Nam, overexploitation, pollution, and climate change threaten agriculture and the environment, hindered by fragmented policies. Cambodia faces water scarcity due to seasonal variability, inadequate infrastructure, and poor water quality, despite relatively abundant resources. The Asia–Pacific Water Scarcity Programme (WSP) aims to address these challenges by engaging stakeholders, especially governments, to improve water management. The programme focuses on overcoming policy conflicts, regulatory inefficiencies, and underdeveloped management tools, using a four-pillar approach that integrates technical, policy and governance solutions. FAO launched the Asia–Pacific WSP in 2019. This initiative, developed with support from the Australian Water Partnership (AWP), aimed to enhance resilience and improved water resource management through technical, managerial, and policy interventions designed around four key pillars: (i) understanding water use and demand by developing practical capacities in water accounting; (ii) developing water allocation frameworks and processes based on the best available data; (iii) working at the farm and scheme level to optimize productivity with the amount of water sustainably available; and (iv) establishing a regional cooperative platform (RCP) to allow countries to learn from each other. Key activities included in-depth policy analyses, water scarcity mapping, stakeholder consultations, and capacity-building exercises, to assist countries in implementing fair, equitable, and transparent water accounting and allocation frameworks at the national level.
Book (stand-alone)

General interest book
Managing water scarcity in Asia and the Pacific - A summary
Trends, experiences and recommendations for a resilient future
2023

Also available in:

Central Khmer
Indonesian
Thai
Vietnamese

In the Asia–Pacific region, water resources form the basis of agrarian prosperity and economic development. However, increasing water demand due to population growth, rapid industrialisation and urbanisation, and a changing climate undermine those water resources. Like many parts of the world, Asia–Pacific faces increasing water scarcity, with varying characteristics, causes and trends across a diverse range of countries at different stages of development. Understanding of the spatial and temporal differences in water scarcity across the region is, however, limited, and while policies and management strategies are under development in all countries, their effectiveness varies significantly. Responses to water scarcity are often reacting to acute issues such as drought or conflicts between competing water users; while regional and national level policies exist in most cases, they often lack subsidiary legislation, program development or the resources needed for successful implementation. The main objective of the present study was to develop an understanding of the dynamics of water scarcity across Asia–Pacific and how countries manage that scarcity—ultimately informing more effective management approaches that can be scaled across the region.
Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet

Brochure

FAO Water Scarcity Program (WSP) for Asia-Pacific 2021

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The FAO Water Scarcity Program (WSP) for Asia-Pacific seeks to support countries in coping with one of their prime challenges: pursuing food and water securities for sustainable social and economic development amid an unprecedented severe escalation of water scarcity. The WSP will assess the scope of water scarcity, evaluate effective management response options, work to improve governance, and assist partner countries to implement adaptive management in the agricultural water sector using appropriate, and newly developed tools and methodologies.