Increasing complexity and multidisciplinarity of water management has resulted in the
development of broader approaches such as Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM). This
paper discusses the IWRM and particularly its social and participatory dimensions based on the
practical experience gained from the socio-economic analysis within a modelling project in
Cambodia’s Tonle Sap Lake. It is argued that water-related socio-economic analysis can
significantly contribute to water modelling and impact analysis work because it helps to link
modelling with the most relevant social and economic issues. This way modelling is also better able
to answer to the needs of integrated water resources management.