In just 6 weeks after the 26 December disaster, the Asian Development Bank (ADB)
created the Asian Tsunami Fund (ATF), a multi-donor vehicle for financing immediate reconstruction efforts. With speed, flexibility, and conformity to complex legal requirements - and with substantial initial financing of $600 million from ADB’s own capital - the ATF now provides a pool of funds to deliver emergency grant financing for effective reconstruction. Steps have been taken to ensure that quick processing is balanced by the proper distribution of funds. For example, designs for ATF-funded projects include provisions for random and special audits to ensure the funds have been used properly.
For more information, contact Robert Dobias at rjdobias@adb.org.
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On 22 April 2005, ADB’s Board of Directors approved the Public Communications Policy, giving the public greater access to the documents it produces, and committing ADB to greater openness and dialogue with stakeholders. Under the policy, which becomes effective on 1 September 2005, ADB will make all documents it produces available unless they meet certain exceptions criteria.
Among the information that will now be made publicly available are
- decisions by ADB's Board of Directors
- core administrative documents, such as the institution's budget
- project information at early stages, to enable more involvement of local people
- project monitoring and evaluation information
According to ADB President Haruhiko Kuroda, “(the) new policy puts ADB at the forefront among the multilateral development banks regarding transparency and access to information."
For more details, visit http://www.adb.org/Disclosure.
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About 70 representatives from a broad range of nongovernment organizations (NGOs) in more than 20 ADB member countries will participate in the 38th Annual Meeting of ADB’s Board of Governors and related events being held in Istanbul, Turkey, 2-6 May 2005. The NGO Program of the Annual Meeting will include several panel
discussions and briefings to strengthen ADB’s ongoing dialogue with civil society organizations.
Among the topics being explored during the NGO Program are the implementation of ADB’s policies on anticorruption, governance, and water; development effectiveness; and NGO-business partnerships for sustainable development. ADB will also brief delegates on implementation of ADB-Government-NGO Cooperation: A Framework for Action (2003-2005), and the formulation of a new action plan for ADB’s engagement of civil society through 2010.
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ADB has begun a comprehensive review of the implementation of its Water Policy. This review will yield an assessment of the performance of ADB and its clients and partners in implementing the policy; identify medium and long-term water sector development challenges and investment requirements in Asia and the Pacific; determine whether the policy needs to be revised or supplemented; and ascertain the institutional capacity and human and financial resource constraints for policy implementation in developing countries and within ADB. The review will involve broad stakeholder participation, transparent proceedings and reporting, and wide dissemination of the policy and the review’s results and recommendations. Regular updates are available on the web site below.
For more information, contact Kathryn Nelson at knelson@adb.org.
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A coal mine methane/coal bed methane utilization project in Fuxin, Peoples Republic of China, is the first project under ADB’s Clean Development Mechanism Facility to be presented to carbon buyers. Between 2006-2012, more than 5 million carbon credits are expected to be generated from the Fuxin project, which is part of an ADB-assisted environmental improvement project in Liaoning.
For more information, contact Toru Kubo at tkubo@adb.org.
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The $50 million Sindh Rural Development Project, which started in May 2004, aims to reduce poverty and improve the social status and economic well-being of the rural poor in four districts of Pakistan: Badin, Mirpurkhas, Sanghar, and Thatta. The project is being implemented at the district level through partnerships among government and community-based organizations and other NGOs. Key project components include improving governance and legal support, upgrading rural infrastructure, and conducting outreach to the poor. It is expected that participatory extension services will reach village groups and support their adoption of new farm technologies.
For more information, contact Ismat Shahjehan at ishahjehan@adb.org.
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ADB will help the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) achieve its poverty reduction and development goals through
a public sector loan of $20 million to finance the Government’s equity participation in the Nam
Theun 2 Hydroelectric Project. ADB is also providing a private sector loan to the project company for up to $50 million, and a political risk guarantee of up to $50 million to mobilize commercial loans to the project company. Revenue from the project will help the Government improve livelihoods, rural infrastructure, irrigation systems, water supply, education, and health facilities in many parts of the country.
The project will also help preserve the Nakai Nam Theun-National Protected Area, one of Southeast Asia's few remaining intact tropical rainforests and wildlife habitats. Extensive consultations with stakeholders and a detailed analysis of potential social and environmental impacts preceded ADB’s decision to support the project.
For more information, contact WooChong Um at wcum@adb.org.
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An ADB-financed community action project is stressing prevention in the battle against HIV/AIDS in Cambodia. Local government authorities are working with NGOs in the context of the Cambodian Ministry of Health’s “Strategic Plan for HIV/AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) Prevention and Care, 2004-2007.” Counseling is being provided to sex workers employed in karaoke bars, brothels, and massage parlors that are high risk areas for STIs. ADB-financed efforts have been complemented by CARE Cambodia, an NGO which has been supporting outreach programs that include home-based care for chronically ill patients; assisting orphans and vulnerable children; and organizing meetings where HIV/AIDS patients share experiences, plan group activities, and receive medical treatment.
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ADB’s Regional and Sustainable Development Department has published Scaling-Up Poverty Reduction: ADB in Asia and the Pacific. The paper highlights three key lessons from poverty reduction
initiatives in the region:
- broad-based and sustained high economic growth is the single most important factor in attaining poverty reduction
- poverty can be reduced further when social development programs complement policies for accelerating economic growth
- inclusive growth depends on sufficient institutional capacity for macroeconomic management, fiscal accountability, and an appropriate regulatory framework for private sector development as well as for the effective and efficient delivery of core public services
Scaling-Up Poverty is Number 9 in the Poverty and Social Development Papers series, and can be downloaded from ADB’s web site.
For more information, contact Shiladitya Chatterjee at schatterjee@adb.org.
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ADB has made available the following reports on ADB-assisted projects that have gone through ADB’s inspection process (now superseded by the Accountability Mechanism):
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This regular feature spotlights one of the many civil society organizations that meet with ADB staff at the institution’s headquarters each month.
MNEC is an alliance of 14 nature and environment conservation research institutes, centers, and NGOs in Mongolia. It assists decision makers, scientists, and the public and private sector in Mongolia by conducting studies, scientific research, and practical activities; and by providing information to enhance understanding of the environment and natural resources, and their sustainable use. The alliance also seeks to improve the technical and scientific basis for decision making on environmental issues through honest investigation and the application of common sense to problem solving.
A key area of MNEC’s work is policy development and institution building related to the environment, biodiversity, sustainable development, and biological resource conservation and restoration. MNEC also reviews and drafts legislation, including environmental laws related to global environmental treaties. Other activities include environmental planning and management; contributing to the implementation of global environmental conventions; and compiling inventories and undertaking assessments and valuations.
The last range of activities includes basic ecological valuations; ecosystem and socioeconomic surveys; vegetation mapping; evaluations and assessments focused on conservation and sustainable development; terrain analysis; geological mapping; surface/ground water contaminant geochemistry; hydrogeology; and status studies of rare and endangered species. MNEC also has the capacity to carry out ecological and biological research, environmental assessments, client needs assessments, and monitoring of environmental and biodiversity trends.
The alliance’s business philosophy includes finding ecologically, socially, and economically sustainable solutions that can be understood, accepted, and supported by people, and enhancing the ability and capacity of communities to value nature and to live in greater harmony with the environment.
MNEC has been a recipient of financing under ADB’s pilot NGO small grants fund (RETA 6109). ADB provided support to the alliance to carry out a community-based natural resource management project.
Mendbayar Badarch, Director, Mongolian Nature and Environment Consortium, met with staff of ADB’s NGO Center during a
visit to Manila 24-25 February 2005. For more information on MNEC, contact e-mail mnec@magicnet.mn,
or visit the alliance’s web site at http://www.mnec.org.mn/.
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ADB offers many opportunities for contractors, consultants, investors, and job applicants. The business opportunities section of ADB’s web site contains information about proposed projects and contract awards, as well as guidelines on the hiring of consultants and on procurement. ADB frequently engages NGOs and staff of NGOs as consultants,
particularly for technical assistance activities. In addition, it regularly organizes business opportunity seminars to explain procedures related to procurement, consulting, and contracts. These seminars are included in the calendar section of ADB’s web site.
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A listing in this section does not imply ADB endorsement or availability of financing for participants.
- International course on “Participatory Approaches to Development Management,” 2-20 May 2005, Silang, Cavite, Philippines. Contact: Angie
Algo, IIRR, e-mail: Angie.Algo@iirr.org; tel: +63.46 414.2417; fax: +63.2 414.2420; web site: http://www.iirr.org.
- International training program on “Poverty Reduction and Civil Society Participation,” 4-13 May 2005, Antwerp, Belgium. Scholarships are available for a limited number of participants from developing countries. Contact VLIR Secretariat for Development Co-operation, e-mail: scholarships@vlir.be; tel: +32.2 289.0558; fax: +32.2 514.7277; web site: http://www.eldris.org/cf/rdr/rdr.cfm?doc=DOC16704.
- Sixth International Workshop on Resource Mobilization, 6-8 May 2005, Bangkok, Thailand. Contact: Louise O’Mahoney, Resource Alliance,
e-mail: louise@resource-alliance.org or iwrm@resource-alliance.org; tel: +44.207 587.0287; fax: +44.207 582.4335; web site: http://www.resource-alliance.org/subsection.php?sectionid=5&subsectionid=88.
- Inaugural Meeting of The Network for NGO-Private Sector Cooperation for Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific, 6 May 2005, Bangkok, Thailand. Contact: Pareena Prayukvong, Kenan Institute Asia, e-mail: pareenap@kiasia.org;
tel: +66.2 229.3131; fax: +66.2 229.3130; web site: http://www.network-ngo-ps.org.
- International Seminar on “Operationalizing Knowledge Management in NGOs,” 2-3 June 2005, Bali, Indonesia. Contact: Michael Schueber, Stratagility, e-mail: michael.schueber@stratagility.com; tel: +62.81 855.35.94; fax: +62.361 239.655.
- International Task Force for the Rural Poor 6th Conference, “Investing in the Rural Poor,” 2-3 July, London, UK. Contact: Jyoti Singh, INTAF, e-mail: jan_singh2002@yahoo.co.uk; web site: www.ivcs.org.uk/intaf/intaf2005.html.
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ADB makes hundreds of documents and books publicly available each year on its web site and through a growing network of 170 depository libraries around the world. The extensive online Publication
Catalog allows users to browse through a list of over 4,000 titles.
Recent releases include the following:
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