From March 17 to 21, 2025, the Institute for Water Resources Planning (IWRP) held working sessions with a team of experts from the International Water Centre (IWC) of Griffith University, Australia, within the framework of the project "Understanding the role of remote sensing in supporting agricultural water management in Southeast Asia." The expert delegation included Dr. Regina Souter, Director of the Centre, and Dr. Adam Lillicrap, Remote Sensing and Hydrology Specialist. The project is funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) under the Australian Government's Development Assistance Program.

Towards Efficient and Sustainable Water Management

The project's goal is to enhance water use efficiency in small-scale agriculture by applying remote sensing technology and water balance calculation tools in managing water for sub-basin areas. Specific objectives include:

• Identifying suitable and feasible remote sensing data for water management;
• Describing the management, governance, and decision-making mechanisms related to water resource use;
• Developing and testing integrated remote sensing data tools for water balance calculations;
• Assessing the potential for scaling the model for use in Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries.

Balancing Technology with Policy

During their visit to Vietnam, the Vietnam and Australian expert teams held a project kick-off meeting to clarify the objectives, tasks, and implementation methods. The experts were divided into two specialized groups responsible for key components of the project: one focused on investigating and assessing the needs and capabilities of satellite technology and remote sensing imagery, while the other worked on the research and development of water accounting technologies using remote sensing data.

Close coordination between the two groups - one focusing on social and governance aspects, and the other on technical challenges - ensures that the project addresses both policy issues and technical challenges in managing agricultural water resources. The goal is to support local authorities in improving water management through the use of remote sensing technology in the current context.

Commitment from International and Vietnamese Partners

As part of the working agenda, the Australian experts met with Mr. Lương Ngọc Chung, Deputy Director of IWRP. During the meeting, the experts provided a brief overview of the project and introduced their technical approach. Mr. Chung expressed his appreciation for the practical significance of the project and affirmed IWRP's capabilities in supporting and implementing technical tasks, particularly in integrating remote sensing technology and water accounting into the operation of irrigation systems, including surface and groundwater management.

Both sides agreed to continue working closely together and expressed their desire to expand the project's scope and explore new opportunities for future collaboration to better support water resource management in agriculture in Vietnam and Southeast Asia.

During the mission, the project team also met with the ACIAR office at the Australian Embassy in Hanoi. Ms. Nguyễn Thị Thanh An, ACIAR’s Country Representative in Vietnam, shared an overview of ACIAR’s current cooperation programs and the opportunities to connect and build on previous research outcomes. Ms. An particularly emphasized the importance of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment) and ACIAR in March 2024. This MOU is a crucial foundation for enhancing cooperation in scientific research supporting sustainable agricultural, forestry, and fisheries development.

ACIAR also reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the project experts, particularly in promoting information sharing and connecting research results with other ongoing projects in Vietnam within the agricultural development support ecosystem.

Looking Toward the Future

Remote sensing is becoming an essential tool for water resource management, particularly in the context of climate change and increasing water demands in agriculture. The integration of modern technology with local knowledge, alongside collaboration between domestic and international experts, holds the promise of developing effective, scalable solutions with long-term impact.

The project team met with the ACIAR office at the Australian Embassy in Hanoi