Anticorruption and Integrity

Return to current issue.

Feature: Conflict of Interest and Personal Integrity

A conflict of interest is any situation which could potentially and/or improperly influence your decisions and/or compromise your personal integrity, irrespective of whether benefits are actually received as a result or not.

For example, when a staff’s personal interest or relationship may be/is put before ADB’s best interest, that staff is in a conflict of interest situation. Avoiding a conflict of interest situation is crucial in order to safeguard your personal integrity, and justify the trust that has been accorded to you.

Ask yourself if you would be happy for your friends and peers to know what you are doing, or of the position you are in. If you are not, odds are that you are experiencing a conflict of interest, and your personal integrity is at stake.

Types of conflict of interest

There are three types of conflicts of interest. The table below explains what these are, and provides examples.

How to avoid conflicts of interest or mitigate potentially damaging consequences of being in a conflict of interest situation

1. Disclose the conflict of interest situation immediately. Disclosure should be made directly to the staff member’s Director, Head of Department/Office or immediate superior (if more senior). Inquiries and complaints about staff failing to disclose conflicts of interest may be sent to integrity@adb.org or to Director, OAGI.



Administrative Circular No B-2 (AC B-2, in Appendix 3) is the guide for ADB staff in relation to disclosure of

• Non-public information
• Financial and business interests
• External publications
• Speaking in an unofficial capacity
• Benefits & gifts
• Recognitions such as medals, awards, decorations, citations and other similar honors.

Section 4 of AO 2.02 covers the areas previously mentioned under AC B-2, and also includes the area of political & outside activities and interests.

2. If the conflict of interest arises from the ownership of an asset, one option is to divest personal assets or financial/business interests that put you in a position of conflict of interest.

Dispose shares in a corporation that bids for ADB-financed contracts.

3. If you are aware that your situation (family connections, business interests, knowledge of non-public information) puts you in a potentially compromising situation, abstain from being part of the process that will require your influence on the outcome.
4. ADB staff must maintain a high degree of integrity and concern for ADB's interests. As such, any situation and activity which may reflect adversely on the institution, compromise its operations, or lead to conflicts of interest, even if not specifically covered by Administrative Orders, Administrative Circulars or other documents, must be carefully evaluated.

AO 2.01 states that its recruitment practices should avoid any element of nepotism, conflict of interest and other questionable situations. Accordingly, close relatives of personnel or their spouses will not be eligible for appointment as a staff member of ADB. While the employment of close relatives is not specifically discussed as requiring disclosure, incumbent ADB staff whose close relatives are employed by ADB should disclose this fact to the relevant officers.

ADB Guidelines and Instructions on conflict of interest situations

• Project Administration Instructions No. 2.01: General Guidelines on Recruiting Consultants, Section E. (Issued December 2001, Revised February 2008)
• Procurement Guidelines, Section 1.15 (c) (December 2007)
• Guidelines on the Use of Consultants by Asian Development Bank and Its Borrowers, paragraphs 1.10-1.11(c) (February 2007)

If you have any queries on conflict of interest, email integrity@adb.org.