His Excellency Hale Tony, Vice Chairman of the Tonle Sap Authority, invited to meet and discuss with a delegation from Nanjing Hydrological Research Institute of the Ministry of Water Resources, People's Republic of China.

On the afternoon of Sunday, March 16, 2025, His Excellency Hell Tony, Deputy Director-General of the Tonle Sap Authority, representing His Excellency Thor Chetha, Senior Minister and Chairman of the Tonle Sap Authority, hosted a meeting to discuss cooperation with a delegation from the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI) of the Ministry of Water Resources of the People's Republic of China. The delegation was led by His Excellency Professor Dai Jiqun, Director of the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI), at the Secretariat of the Tonle Sap Authority. The meeting was attended by the Deputy Secretary-General, Deputy Secretaries-General, heads and deputy heads of departments, and technical officials from the Secretariat of the Tonle Sap Authority, as well as representatives from the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI) of the Ministry of Water Resources of China.

Please be informed that the purpose of this meeting was to enhance and strengthen cooperation between the Tonle Sap Authority and the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI) in water and environmental management in the Tonle Sap Lake area, as well as to promote sustainable management of the Tonle Sap Lake and share experiences in lake management, such as those from Lake Taihu and other lakes in the People's Republic of China.

On this occasion, His Excellency Hell Tony, Deputy Director-General, welcomed the delegation and highlighted some of the challenges affecting the Tonle Sap Lake, including water and environmental resource management, such as the drying up of the lake and its major rivers during the dry season and flooding during the rainy season. His Excellency also recalled the delegation's visit to the Tonle Sap Authority, which stemmed from the joint cooperation between the Tonle Sap Authority and the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute and the Automated Water Conservation Institute (NIHWA) of the Ministry of Water Resources of China. This cooperation included the implementation of a pilot project on hydrological observation and data transmission technology for the Tonle Sap Basin and the invitation of the Tonle Sap Authority delegation to attend the International Taihu Conference on Gushi Lake Water Management in Wuxi City, People's Republic of China, from November 13-15, 2024.

Please also be informed that His Excellency Professor Dai Jiqun, representing the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI), briefed the meeting on the mission, roles, responsibilities, and structure of the institute. He also shared extensive experiences in water management at Lake Taihu, where the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI) has successfully implemented water management, environmental management, water quality control, flood management, and drought mitigation. His Excellency emphasized the continued strengthening of cooperation between the Tonle Sap Authority and the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI), including technical support, human resource training, and experience sharing through study tours at the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI) in the People's Republic of China in the future.

Please note that during this meeting, the Tonle Sap Authority and the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI) of the Ministry of Water Resources of the People's Republic of China signed two documents:

1. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Tonle Sap Authority, represented by His Excellency Hel Tony, Deputy Director-General, and the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI), represented by His Excellency Professor Dai Jiqun, Director of the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute (NHRI). The MoU aims to strengthen cooperation in sharing experiences, data, information, monitoring, joint assessments, research, study tours, and capacity building related to the development and management of water resources in the Tonle Sap Lake.

2. A handover document for stations and equipment under the joint cooperation project between the Tonle Sap Authority and the Nanjing Hydraulic Research Institute and the Automated Water Conservation Institute (NIHWA) of the Ministry of Water Resources of the People's Republic of China. This project involved the implementation of a pilot study on hydrological observation and data transmission technology for the Tonle Sap Basin, including 11 hydrological and automatic weather stations around the Tonle Sap Lake and 1 Master Station.