Catalog

Sharing Strengths
ADB Review [ August 2005 ]

A new era in environmental protection has begun with ADB entering into a Partnership for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development with IUCN

By Omana Nair, (onair@adb.org)
External Relations Specialist

The then Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Tadao Chino and The World Conservation Union (IUCN) Director-General Achim Steiner signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in November 2004 to establish the basis for cooperation between the two institutions.

CORPORATE COLLABORATION IUCN Director-General Achim Steiner and then ADB President Tadao Chino affirm their organizations’ common goals of poverty reduction and biodiversity conservation

“ADB and IUCN have had a long history of fruitful cooperation on conservation,” Mr. Chino said. “Formalization of our collaboration will build new synergies and emphasize the strengths of our respective organizations.”

He added that the MOU, signed at the 3rd IUCN World Conservation Congress in Bangkok, provides new impetus to ADB’s ongoing collaboration to promote links between health, poverty, and conservation.

“The MOU reinforces our partnership and acknowledges ADB and IUCN’s common aim of poverty reduction and conservation of biodiversity,” he said.

Mr. Steiner pointed out that ADB and IUCN have a mutual interest in achieving relevant and effective policies and programs for international development. “Both are international organizations that have mandates to support sustainable development in the Asia and Pacific region, have common membership in the region, have observer status in the United Nations General Assembly, and seek to build strategic alliances with their partners in the international development community,” he said.

During the past decade, ADB and IUCN have worked on several programs and projects. The scope of these activities has ranged from capacity-building exercises to regional technical assistance, conferences, and publications. The cooperation between ADB and IUCN benefits greatly from IUCN’s participation in and access to conservation technologies in various environmental fields as well as the organization’s knowledge of country-specific environmental conservation issues.

ADB and IUCN will work together to support poverty reduction at the regional and subregional levels in the Asia and Pacific region and work toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals.

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Guiding Principle

Cooperation between ADB and IUCN will be guided by the principle that country and regional ownership of sound development policies and programs is necessary to ensure sustainable development. ADB and IUCN agreed that collaboration will strengthen institutional capacities in both organizations, and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the use of their respective resources.

Development policies and programs supported through ADB-IUCN collaboration will be designed to be results-oriented and built on transparent relationships between development assistance providers and beneficiary countries. Both organizations will emphasize long-term approaches to sustainable development, and encourage full stakeholder participation and gender equity.

“ADB has taken to heart the valuable lessons learned about the links between health, poverty, and conservation,” Mr. Chino said.

“We will continue to work in partnership with governments, the development community, and civil society toward poverty reduction and environmentally sustainable development,” he said. “It is important for the region to ensure that economic growth does not come at the expense of people’s quality of life and environment degradation.”

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