US  Secretary of State Rex Tillerson proposes a Water Source Data Initiative to help Mekong nations manage water resources sustainably.. (Photo: EPA)

The meeting was attended by the foreign ministers of the Lower Mekong Countries—Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Burma, and Vietnam—plus the US Secretary of State and the ASEAN General Secretary. Minh said that the Lower Mekong Initiative will help Mekong nations adapt and seize new development opportunities in a rapidly changing Asia-Pacific region. The ministers agreed to boost the six pillars—agriculture and food security; “connectivity” of infrastructure, institutions, and communities; education; energy security; environment and water; and health—to successfully implement their 2016-2018 Action Plan.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson proposed a Water Source Data Initiative to help Mekong nations collect, share, and manage water resources sustainably. The Initiative was hailed by the Mekong ministers, who agreed to reconvene in Singapore next year.