Boats on the Mekong River, Laos, 2022 (photography)

Boats on the Mekong River, Luang Prabang, Louangphabang Province, Laos. The flow of the Mekong River is the lowest in 100 years, and the food supply is in danger. The Mekong River rises in the Tibetan highlands, flows through six Asian countries - China, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam - and empties into the South China Sea. The river basin is home to the world's largest inland fishery and more than 60 million people depend on it for their livelihoods. A combination of drought and controversial upstream water policies could spell disaster in Southeast Asia. The severe drought that has reduced Mekong flows in Southeast Asia to their lowest levels in more than a century could have devastating consequences for fish, as well as for the tens of millions of people who live, work and feed on the river.