Tuesday | 3 August 2021

Regional Water Industry Expert Dialogue Session

  • 10:00 - 12:00 (GMT+8)

Main Topic:

Lessons Learned from Global Pandemic for Water Industry

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on the world’s economic and social landscape, and ensuring optimal health sector capabilities and continued economic survival is undoubtedly a major national agenda. As we fight to tackle this pandemic, economic recovery continues to be driven. In this regard, the water sector is one of the key forces in driving economic recovery as well as promoting people’s health. Reflecting on the diversity of the region, the dialogue will feature experts as they talk about how they are coping, where they are right now and the progress and challenges that we are currently facing.
Presentation Slide

Session Speakers

Mr. Minh Lim

Executive Director,
Cambodian Water Supply Association (C.W.A)

Ir. Dr. Hj. Mohmad Asari Daud

President,
Malaysian Water Association (MWA)

Dr. Ir. Andi Wijaya Adani, M.Sc.

Head of South Sumatera Regional Management,
​Association of Indonesian Drinking Water Companies (PERPAMSI)

Session Moderator

Dato' Teo Yen Hua

Advisor,
Informa Markets ASEAN Water Series

Vietnam Session

  • 15:00 - 17:00 (GMT+8)
Presentation Slide

Topic 1:

Policies and Investment Opportunities in Water Supply in Vietnam

Abstract

Vietnam currently has over 860 urban areas (about 35-36 million urban residents) with a total capacity of 10.6 million m3/day-night water plants (urban water supply rate reaches 89%). Effects of climate change, saltwater intrusion, drought, and pollution of water sources are potential threats to water supply safety not only for Vietnam but also for other countries around the world. It is forecasted that in the period to 2030, the demand for water supply for urban areas in Vietnam will increase by more than 1.5 times compared to the present. Regulations on investment policy on water supply for urban areas in Vietnam have been identified: (i) Authority to select water supply units: Provincial People’s Committees organize the selection of water supply units within the province. , city; The Ministry of Construction shall organize the selection of water supply units for water supply works with inter-provincial scope of water supply, with the participation of relevant provinces; The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall organize the selection of water supply units for rural water supply works with the participation of relevant provinces; (ii) Regarding land use: priority is given to reserve the land fund for construction of water supply works; land use levy and land rent exemption for water supply works; (iii) The price of clean water for daily life is calculated correctly, taking into account all factors of production costs that are reasonable, valid and profitable; suitable with water quality, economic – technical criteria, natural conditions, socio-economic development conditions of the locality; The average retail price of clean water must be decided by the provincial People’s Committee. Investment projects on water supply in the inter-provincial region in response to climate change according to Decision No. 2140/QD-TTg dated November 8, 2016 Prime Minister Approving the master plan on water supply in the Mekong Delta region to by 2030, with a vision to 2050, for 13 provinces/cities of the Mekong Delta (with an area of about 40,604.7 km2) with a water supply demand of about 3.27 million m3/day-night; It is necessary to invest in the construction of 05 water plants (in the period of 2025-2030 with a capacity of 100 – 600 thousand m3/day-night) and an inter-provincial transmission pipeline network to supply water to areas with saltwater intrusion sources.

Session Speaker

PhD. Tran Anh Tuan

Vice Director of Vietnam Water Supply and Sewerage Association (VWSA) - Head of Policy Department;
Former General Director, Deputy General Director,
Technical Infrastructure Agency, Ministry of Construction

Topic 2:

Investment Policy for Urban Wastewater Collection and Treatment in Vietnam

Abstract

Vietnam water & wastewater Industry is in the intensive development period, with big efforts being made for expansion of service area, improvement of service quality, with different stakeholders involved. Financial need for 100% urban wastewater treatment is estimated USD 8-10 bio. Main challenges of municipal wastewater management include: Needs in adequate sanitation strategy and specialized wastewater planning; Increase of household connection coverage; Fight with urban flooding and climate change impacts; Sludge management, as well as septic tank and fecal sludge management; Mobilization of alternative sources of funding (Capex); Realization of Cost recovery (Opex). As a new format of private sector participation, there are 10 cities with private wastewater companies providing O&M contracts. Some cities have set the roadmap to increase the wastewater tariffs.

Some Vietnamese policies in urban wastewater management in a coming decade: Development of roadmap for urban wastewater collection and treatment, priority list, required resources; Integrated (river basin) management; Climate change adaptation considerations; Control of ground level and green space in urban projects; Focus on urban flooding control and risk management; Encouraging eco-friendly, sustainable urban infrastructure solutions; Encouraging rainwater harvesting and wastewater reuse; Combination of centralized and decentralized wastewater management solutions; Capacity building activities; Application of O&M Contract bidding for service quality and efficiency; Development of policies for mobilizing of private investors in wastewater sector; Preparation of Law of Wastewater (2021 – 2025).

There are lots of business opportunities in municipal wastewater field, thanks to current intensive development in cities, especially in the coming recovery period after pandemic. There are crucial needs in new technologies in wastewater collection, treatment, sludge treatment, resource recovery, smart system management solutions, etc. The recently issued Law of PPP Investment (2020) encourages PPP investment in 5 sectors, including water supply, wastewater, solid waste management. Private sector participation can be found in large projects in the form of construction, equipment supply, EPC, BOO, O&M contracts. In Decentralized wastewater management, the private sector is a key player.

Session Speaker

Prof. Dr. Viet-Anh Nguyen

Vice President cum Head of Science and Technology Department,
Vietnam Water Supply and Sewerage Association (VWSA);
Professor in Water and Wastewater Engineering, Hanoi University of Civil Engineering (HUCE)

Topic 3:

Multi-basin Operational Water Model and Data Services for Vietnam and Mekong Region

Abstract

GIS-based data portal has been widely used for sharing water data and supporting watershed management in different scales. A friendly frontend decision-support system that integrates data from various sources with support of operational model at the backend, help to make decision processes more effective and transparent. This presentation will introduce the design and development of the Asean Water Portal (http://waterportal.vaci.org.vn/) which provides access and visualization for historical and forecasted high-resolution data for the entire Vietnam and Mekong region. Current essential water variables include precipitation, temperature, ET, streamflow, soil moisture, water level, reservoir inflow/outflow, sediment concentration etc. at different time scale. Forcing data (i.e., precipitation, temperature) at the resolution of 0.25 deg is merged from multi-sources (i.e., satellite, reanalysis, in-situ) using weighted-ensemble method while the other water variables are generated using multi-basin HYPE model and other satellite techniques. The historical data since 1979 is updated once per year to help users understand the characteristics and monitor the variation of the water resources. The forecasting data provides short-term (16-day ahead) and seasonal forecasts (up to 6-month ahead) are updated in near real-time manner to assist decision makers, reservoir operators, and citizens in making plans. The projected impacts of climate change on these water variables are also integrated in the portal for long-term planning application. The portal also provides model performance in different metrics to show the quality control of the provided data and guidance for wider uptake of the data by end users.

Session Speaker

PhD. Duong Du BUI

Director of Water Resources Monitoring Department,
National Center for Water Resources Planning and Investigation (NAWAPI),
Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE),
Chair (Water, Ecology & Fisheries) of US-ASEAN S&T Fellow Association

Country Session Moderator

Prof. Dr. Viet-Anh Nguyen

Vice President cum Head of Science and Technology Department,
Vietnam Water Supply and Sewerage Association (VWSA);
Professor in Water and Wastewater Engineering, Hanoi University of Civil Engineering (HUCE)