Climate Change Strategic Plan for Water Resources and Meteorology 2013-2017.

This Climate Change Strategic Plan (CCSP) for Water Resources and Meteorology 2013-2017 is a multi-sectoral policy document at the national level. The goal of the water resources -related CCSP is to fulfil all climate change adaptation activities in water resources management and development for sustainable water resource use. The goals for meteorology are to become a national organization with accountability and responsibility in providing excellent weather forecasting and climate information services in Cambodia; and to be fully coordinated and engaged in a comprehensive study on climate change impacts, as well as climate change responsible measures for the public and development of national climatic information systems for agricultural activities.
The Policy seeks to sustainable use and conservation water resources, and the key relevant objective include: 1. Protect, manage and use water resources in effective, equitable and sustainable manners, protecting them from the negative impacts of climate change; 2. Ensure environmental protection and conservation of water resources; 3. Apply modern sustainable management models adaptive to climate change context; etc.
Many aspects of the climate change adaption and mitigation are linked with the reduction of poverty, and therefore several strategies and actions included in the Policy impact the rural poverty reduction. The key relevant objectives for water resources proposed in the Policy include: Maximize sustainable water resources contributions to poverty reduction, enhanced livelihoods and equitable economic growth; Adapt to climate change and mitigate its effects on water resource-based livelihoods; Create stronger community participation, such as FWUC, in water resource management and development, to address impacts or obtain benefits from climate-change induced opportunities; etc.
Climate change Challenges are more threatening to a developing country like Cambodia as climate change will increase water management challenges; less rainfall is anticipated during the dry season and more during the wet season, with more extreme weather events and potentially worse seasonal water shortages and floods. To achieve the goal of the water resources related CCSP, the key objectives include: 1. Along with climate change adaptation and mitigation schemes, regulate, modify and subsidize water resource service fees for all water resource development activities; 2. Apply Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) that allows for holistic planning across sectors, jurisdictions and local government borders for climate change adaptation and mitigation; 3. Raise awareness and capacity of institutions, and quality of officials in climate change adaptation and mitigation, to enable sustainable development and management of water resources; 4. Partner with the private sector to develop sustainable financial systems. The objectives of the department of meteorology are also proposed: 1. To build a reliable and predictable meteorological service; 2. To improve human resource capacity at national and provincial levels to meet the requirements of a high-quality meteorological information service provider; 3. To extend climate networking nationally and internationally; 4. To set up a national early warning system, and give information related to air pollution.