Seminar 1

Location: Onsite – Henan Province (Zhengzhou city), hybrid (online participation for Day 1 and Day 3)

Date: May 24 – 26

Seminar 2

Location: Kerry Hotel, Beijing.           

Date: July 3, 2023 (Monday), 09:00-17:10 (Beijing time)

Meeting ID: 960 0014 1764

Passcode: YREC230703

The Yellow River Basin is one of People's Republic of China’s (PRC) most important water sources, supplying water to more than 420 million people and supporting agriculture, hydropower, and industrial production. However, this precious resource is threatened by a range of factors, including population growth, urbanization, and climate change, requiring action to ensure sustainable, safe and resilient water resources management. It is important to understand the challenges facing the Yellow River Basin and the main drivers of water scarcity. For example, rapid urbanization has increased pressure on water resources, and climate change has led to changes in precipitation patterns and increased water variability. At the same time, increasing demand for water for agriculture and industry has led to overexploitation and pollution of water resources, contributing to a decline in water quality and quantity.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is supporting the PRC Government to strengthen the sustainable management of natural capital in the PRC’s second largest river basin. The Yellow River Ecological Corridor (YREC) Program was established in 2020 adopting a comprehensive ecosystem-based management approach for water resources and land management by considering the river basin as an ecological corridor. The program is being implemented with the support from the following PRC Government agencies and other sectors involved with resource management and economic development of the Yellow River Basin: (i) the Yellow River Conservancy Commission (YRCC); (ii) the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE); (iii) Foreign Economic Cooperation Center, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs; (iv) Ministry of Water Resources (MWR); (v) National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC); (vi) National Forest and Grassland Administration; (vii) Nine provinces in the Yellow River basins; (viii) Chinese Academy of Science and other academic institutes; and (ix) private sectors and NGOs.

Balancing economic growth and sustainable development in the Yellow River basin is a challenging task. Against this background, the YREC builds on three key principles: (i) protect the basin’s fragile ecological environment, (ii) address the severe condition of the water resources and natural capital (balancing use and preservation), and (iii) promote high-quality green development and sustainable livelihoods. The YREC includes a program of lending, non-lending, and policy interventions across four main thematic areas, including: (i) natural resources management and biodiversity conservation, (ii) climate-resilient and sustainable smart agriculture, (iii) climate change mitigation and adaptation, and (iv) integrated urban-rural green development.

The recent event during the United Nations Water Conference in New York (23 March 2023) on Resilient Rivers to Healthy Coasts for People and the Planet: An Integrated River Basin Management Approach saw ADB, development partners, and PRC government counterparts, such as the MWR, reaffirm their commitment to the global 2030 water agenda. Guoying Li, Minister of Water Resources, and Woochong Um, Managing Director General of the ADB, framed the session and jointly emphasized the importance of ADB’s technical assistance, continued collaboration on policy dialogue, joint knowledge work to address the pressing water challenges in the PRC and sharing solutions through south-south cooperation in the region with other ADB regional member countries.

ADB-Financing (in USD) to support the YREC program.

• ADB lending portfolio for YREC: about a total of $1.8 billion for investment loans including additional financing by the government of the PRC

Financing (in USD)

• ADB non-lending portfolio: about $3.8 million including 14 technical assistance projects under a cluster Technical Assistance program.

YREC Seminar Series objectives

1. To provide a platform in which the PRC partners (ministries, administrations, provinces, etc.) socialize and discuss the issues in the Yellow River they jointly will have to solve. 
2. To get ownership at PRC level of the YREC program. 
3. To disseminate YREC results, in particular for technical assistance and loan projects.
4. For ADB, to learn from the PRC partners about the challenges in the basin.  
5. South-south cooperation among PRC and other ADB regional developing member countries
6. To explore opportunities of cooperation, knowledge sharing and ADB financial support in the context of the current ADB-PRC Country Partnership Program (2021-2025).