Water follows no political or administrative borders across the landscape, transcending local rules and national regulations. To effectively manage water resources in large and complex watersheds, policymakers and planners need to work together to build integrated watershed management plans, policies and practices, in consultation with the communities who depend on those resources.
 
The Prek Thnot watershed is one of Cambodia’s key watersheds and a major tributary to the Mekong River. From 2015 to 2019, APFNet and Cambodia’s Institute of Forest and Wildlife Research and Development and the Forestry Administration implemented a project to build the capacity of government and local stakeholders to develop an integrated watershed plan for Prek Thnot using scientific analysis and participatory land use planning techniques.
 
The project report “Developing an Integrated Watershed Management Plan for Cambodia’s Prek Thnot Watershed” outlines the process and activities that led to the development of the plan. Marking a milestone in the history of land use planning in Cambodia, policies and practices generated by this plan can be integrated into provincial and community land use plans, allowing for more holistic planning across the watershed.
 

Proposed land use allocation in Prek Thnot watershed
 

The project also piloted new agroforestry farming systems and soil conservation techniques with farmers in erosion-prone areas, with support from forest-based community enterprises.
 
Download the full report here:Developing an integrated watershed management plan for Cambodia’s Prek Thnot watershed