39th Annual Meeting

Regional Integration and Natural Resource Impacts

3 May 2006 (4:30 – 6:00 p.m.)

ADB is investing in regional infrastructure programs, such as regional road networks and power grids. In addition, it is helping to facilitate the movement of goods and services within and across regions. The costs and benefits of these initiatives do not always distribute equally among countries and populations in the regions. While some countries and segments of population may benefit from the results from integration, others often suffer from it. Although trade can result in economic growth on the broad scale, some groups may be disadvantaged when local or national markets are facing competition from other regional producers. The panel examined benefits and negative impacts of regional integration, and explored how they are linked to natural resource extraction.