Asian Development Bank

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank that works to support social and economic development across Asia. It is based in the city of Mandaluyong, in Metro Manila, Philippines, and has offices around the world.

The bank was created 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 operates similarly to the World Bank, using a voting system based on how much money each member contributes. Every year, it publishes a report about its work and finances for everyone to see. The ADB also offers scholarships, helping about 300 students each year study in different Asian countries. After their studies, 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 made up of 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 are the main recipients of development projects, while non-regional members mostly provide money for the bank. Eight directors come from regional members and four from non-regional members.

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

The bank's main office is located at 6 ADB Avenue in Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines. It has 42 offices in Asia and the Pacific, and representative 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

.jpg)

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 creating a new financial institution to support development projects in Southeast Asia. The idea was revisited in 1962 when an economist from Tokyo proposed forming a development bank for the Asian region. This idea gained support, and an expert group was formed to study it.

There was some debate over where the bank should be located. Eight cities wanted to host it, but after several votes, Manila was chosen as the headquarters. The bank officially started on December 19, 1966, and its first president was Takeshi Watanabe.

1970s–1980s

In the 1970s, the bank began helping with education, health, roads, and electricity. It also started working on energy projects after oil prices rose. In the 1980s, it began working more with private businesses to help poor countries.

1990s

During the 1990s, the bank helped countries along the Mekong River work together. It also responded to a big financial crisis in the region by approving a large loan to South Korea. The bank made reducing poverty its main goal.

2000s

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

2010s

By 2010, Asia was growing economically but still had many poor people. The bank helped with loans and grants to support growth. It also restarted its work in Myanmar after the country began reforms. In 2020, the bank supported countries fighting COVID-19.

Objectives and activities

The Asian Development Bank works to help people in Asia and the Pacific live better lives. It focuses on reducing poverty by supporting growth that includes everyone and takes care of the environment. The bank helps countries build important things like roads, hospitals, and systems that manage money and services. It also aids in preparing for and handling the effects of climate change and caring for natural resources.

The bank pays special attention to five main areas. It supports education, helping more children go to school. It works on protecting the environment and managing natural disasters. It strengthens financial systems so they can 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. Starting in 2017, 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, like promises to help with payments and investments. 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 do good for society, even if the projects aren't very profitable. The bank gives this help through loans, shares in companies, and other financial ways. The bank usually doesn't put in more than 25% of the money needed for any project, but this small amount helps bring in much 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, about $9.2 billion of the bank’s $22.9 billion in projects came from these partners. The bank talks with many other groups to make this happen.

Funds and resources

The Asian Development Bank manages many funds and partnerships to help improve lives in Asia and the Pacific. These funds total several billion dollars each year and 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 over $20 billion to support these efforts, focusing on important areas like education, healthcare, and gender equality. The bank also worked on new ways to get more resources and improve how it operates.

Access to information

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) wants to share most of its information with the public. This helps make sure the bank is 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 have said that the Asian Development Bank listens more to big countries like Japan and the United States than to local communities. Groups like Oxfam Australia have pointed out 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 amounts for the 20 largest countries by subscribed capital 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 18 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 as part of settling their accounts.