Opening of the Asian Water Council 2025 Summit in Hanoi

Digital transformation – The key to modern water governance

Photo caption — Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Le Cong Thanh spoke at the conference.

The event was co-organized by the Asian Water Council (AWC), the Northern Water Resources Planning and Investigation Federation (NVWATER) and the Vietnam Water and Environment Association (VWEA), under the chairmanship of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Le Cong Thanh emphasized that this year's conference takes place in the context of the Asian region facing a series of unprecedented challenges such as climate change, extreme natural disasters, water resource depletion and urbanization pressure.

With the theme “Sustainable Water Governance, Digital Transformation and Investment Cooperation for the Future”, this session reflects the strategic vision of AWC, and is in line with the trend of green growth and data science- based governance that is spreading globally.

As a downstream country of many large river systems and strongly affected by climate change, Vietnam has identified water resource management as a strategic priority. The Government has issued many documents and policies towards ensuring water security, equity in access and sustainable use of resources.

During the discussion, experts from Vietnam and Korea shared many solutions for digital transformation, smart management and ensuring water security.

Mr. Nguyen Minh Khuyen, representative of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, said that Vietnam has gradually built a national database, water regulation and allocation tools, and a smart monitoring system for management and licensing. The application of IoT technology in real-time reservoir operations has helped improve operational efficiency, contributing significantly to the budget.

However, Vietnam still faces major challenges as 63% of its surface water comes from outside the country, along with water pollution and degradation; the water security index currently only reaches 2/5. Therefore, it is necessary to continue to improve institutions, promote digital transformation, socialize investment and expand international cooperation.

From an urban perspective, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Diep - Chairman of the Vietnam Water Supply and Drainage Association said that the water supply industry has made a lot of progress, but only about 20% of wastewater is treated, causing great pressure on the environment. He proposed increasing investment and expanding cooperation with international partners, especially with Korea, to develop a sustainable water supply system and adapt to climate change.

Strengthening regional cooperation, responding to climate change

Speaking at the conference, Mr. Seogdae Yun - Chairman of AWC and General Director of Korea Water Corporation (K-water) emphasized: "Climate change challenges transcend national borders, making the need for cooperation and finding common solutions more urgent than ever."

On the sidelines of the conference, many Korean enterprises displayed modern technologies such as smart water management, organic sludge treatment, disaster and flood warning equipment, ultra-precise flow meters and wastewater treatment technology into drinking water.

Also at the conference, the Hanoi Initiative - Action for Asian Water Security was officially announced, focusing on three key contents: Promoting data sharing, international monitoring and sustainable development planning; Improving disaster forecasting and warning capacity, applying AI and digital technology, establishing a regional water security coordination center in AWC; Strengthening policy cooperation and mobilizing international resources.

Within the framework of the event, Deputy Minister Le Cong Thanh had a high-level bilateral working session with Mr. Seogdae Yun, Chairman of AWC and General Director of K-water.

The Deputy Minister affirmed that the Vietnam Water and Environment Association (VWEA) is an organization that plays an important role in the field of water resources, gathering many effectively operating enterprises. He hoped that in the coming time, VWEA and K-water will strengthen cooperation, contributing to promoting sustainable development in the management, exploitation and use of water resources.

For his part, Mr. Seogdae Yun thanked Vietnam for hosting the 23rd Conference, emphasizing that this was an important opportunity to concretize the Joint Statement between the two countries' senior leaders.

On the same afternoon, the signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Secretariat of the Asian Water Council, the Vietnam Water and Environment Association (VWEA) and the Northern Water Resources Planning and Investigation Federation (NVWATER) took place in Hanoi. In addition, a B2B (Business-to-Business) meeting between enterprises of the two countries also took place in parallel, creating opportunities for trade, introducing products and services and promoting cooperation in the field of water and environment.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/thoi-su/khai-mac-hoi-nghi-thuong-dinh-hoi-dong-nuoc-chau-a-2025-tai-ha-noi-20251105214148260.htm