Asian Development Bank

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank that helps with social and economic development in Asia. It is located in Mandaluyong, in Metro Manila, Philippines, and has offices worldwide.

The bank started on 19 December 1966. It includes countries from the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific and some non-regional developed countries. It began with 31 members and grew to 69 members by 2019.

The ADB works like the World Bank, using a voting system based on each member's contributions. Every year, it publishes a report about its work and finances. The ADB also offers scholarships to help about 300 students each year study in Asian countries. After studying, these students help improve their home countries. The bank has official observer status with the United Nations.

Organization

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has a Board of Governors with one person from each member country. This board chooses twelve directors and their helpers. The bank has two types of members: regional members from Asia-Pacific and non-regional members mainly from Europe and North America. Regional members get most of the development projects, while non-regional members mostly give money to the bank. Eight directors are from regional members and four are from non-regional members.

The Board of Governors also picks the bank's president. The president leads the bank for five years and can serve again. Usually, the president is from Japan because Japan owns a lot of the bank. The current president is Masato Kanda. He took over after Masatsugu Asakawa, who left in 2024. Before Asakawa, Takehiko Nakao was president, and before him, Haruhiko Kuroda.

The bank's main office is at 6 ADB Avenue in Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines. It has 42 offices in Asia and the Pacific, and offices in Washington, Frankfurt, Tokyo, and Sydney. The bank has about 3,000 employees from 60 of its 68 member countries.

List of presidents

Takeshi Watanabe, the first president

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Haruhiko Kuroda, the eighth president

Masatsugu Asakawa, the tenth president

Masato Kanda, the eleventh president

History

1960s

In the mid-1950s, Japan's finance minister suggested a new bank to help Southeast Asia. In 1962, an economist from Tokyo proposed a bank for Asia. The idea was studied by experts.

Eight cities wanted to host the bank, but Manila was chosen. The bank started on December 19, 1966. Takeshi Watanabe was its first president.

1970s–1980s

In the 1970s, the bank helped with schools, health, roads, and electricity. It also worked on energy after oil prices rose. In the 1980s, it helped private businesses in poor countries.

1990s

In the 1990s, the bank helped countries along the Mekong River work together. It gave a large loan to South Korea during a financial crisis. The bank’s main goal became reducing poverty.

2000s

In the early 2000s, the bank worked more with private businesses. It helped countries fight diseases like SARS and recover from disasters, such as the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. In 2009, the bank added resources to help the global financial crisis.

2010s

By 2010, Asia was growing but still had many poor people. The bank gave loans and grants to support growth. It restarted work in Myanmar after reforms. In 2020, the bank helped countries fight COVID-19.

Objectives and activities

The Asian Development Bank helps people in Asia and the Pacific to live better lives. It works to reduce poverty by supporting growth that helps everyone and cares for the environment. The bank helps countries build important things like roads, hospitals, and systems that manage money and services. It also helps with preparing for and caring for climate change and protecting natural resources.

The bank focuses on five main areas. It supports education so more children can go to school. It works on protecting the environment and managing natural disasters. It strengthens financial systems to help everyone, especially those who need it most. It builds infrastructure such as transport, energy, and clean water. Lastly, it encourages countries to work together to grow their economies and reduce differences in wealth.

Financings

The Asian Development Bank gives loans to help countries in Asia grow. It offers regular loans with normal interest rates to middle-income countries and special loans with lower rates to poorer countries. Both kinds of loans come from the bank's main money fund.

The bank also helps private businesses by offering different kinds of financial support. In 2017, the bank lent about $19.1 billion, with $3.2 billion going to private companies. All together, the bank's help in 2017 was worth about $28.9 billion.

The bank gets its money by selling bonds to investors and also receives funds from the countries that are members, plus money made from its loans.

Private sector investments

The Asian Development Bank helps private companies with money for projects that help society. The bank gives this help through loans, shares in companies, and other financial ways. The bank usually does not put in more than 25% of the money needed for any project. This small amount helps bring in more money from other sources to support these important projects.

Co-financing

The Asian Development Bank works with other groups to help fund projects. This lets them support more work with the money they have. In 2014, a lot of the bank’s projects came from these partners. The bank talks with many other groups to make this happen.

Funds and resources

The Asian Development Bank manages funds and partnerships to help improve lives in Asia and the Pacific. These funds support projects that help people and economies grow.

In 2022, the bank helped countries deal with challenges such as the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, new global issues, and climate change. It committed support for efforts focusing on important areas like education, healthcare, and gender equality. The bank also worked on new ways to get more resources.

Access to information

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) wants to share most of its information with the public. This helps the bank stay open and honest. The bank will share information unless it could danger someone's safety, privacy, or certain business secrets. When people ask for documents, ADB tries to respond quickly.

Notable projects and technical assistance

The Asian Development Bank has worked on many important projects to help communities grow and improve. Some of these projects include:

• Afghanistan: Hairatan to Mazar-e-Sharif Railway Project
• Armenia: Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Project
• Bhutan: Green Power Development Project
• India: Rural Roads Sector II Investment Program; Agartala Municipal Infrastructure Development Project
• Indonesia: Vocational Education Strengthening Project
• Laos: Northern and Central Regions Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Project
• Mongolia: Food and Nutrition Social Welfare Program and Project
• Philippines: North–South Commuter Railway Extension Project (Malolos–Clark Railway Project and South Commuter Railway Project), jointly funded with Japan International Cooperation Agency; Bataan–Cavite Interlink Bridge, jointly funded by Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank; Laguna Lakeshore Road Network, jointly funded by Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and Export-Import Bank of Korea-Economic Development Cooperation Fund
• Solomon Islands: Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative

Criticism

Some people think the Asian Development Bank listens more to big countries like Japan and the United States than to local communities. Groups like Oxfam Australia have said that some bank projects might hurt poor and marginalized people.

There have also been concerns about big projects, such as Thailand’s Mae Moh coal-fired power station, causing harm to the environment or to local communities. Some critics say the bank’s rules to protect people and nature are not always followed.

The bank has also been questioned about its role during food shortages, with some saying it did not listen to warnings and pushed changes in farming that made problems worse.

Countries with the largest subscribed capital and voting rights

The following table shows the 20 largest countries by their share of money and voting power at the Asian Development Bank as of December 2021.

Members

The Asian Development Bank has 69 members as of September 27, 2024. These members include 50 from the Asian and Pacific Region and 19 from other regions. The year listed next to each member's name shows when they joined the bank. If a country stops being a member, the bank will buy back that country's shares.