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1. Eminent Persons See New Paradigm for ADB in Transformed Asia
A report prepared for ADB by an independent panel of eminent persons projects that, by 2020, Asia will be dramatically transformed into a region that has largely conquered extreme poverty, with 90% of the continent’s people living in “middle income” countries, and with a regional economy comprising 45% of global gross domestic product. The report recommends that ADB focus on six core areas: infrastructure development, financial sector development, energy and environment, regional integration, technological development and innovation, and knowledge management.
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2. Annual Meeting Discussion Panels will Address ADB Policies and Strategies
ADB will hold the 40th Annual Meeting of its Board of Governors from 4 to 7 May in Kyoto, Japan. More than 3,000 delegates are expected to participate in the landmark meeting, including at least 200 representatives of accredited civil society organizations (CSOs). ADB staff will participate in CSO-organized discussion panels addressing the internationally recognized core labor standards, ADB’s Safeguard Policy Update, and the development of ADB’s new Energy Strategy. Complete details on the Annual Meeting’s NGO/Civil Society Program can be found on ADB’s website. For more information, contact Suzanne Nazal, Civil Society Cooperation Officer, NGO and Civil Society Center (NGOC), at snazal@adb.org.
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3. Development Banks Urge Cooperation with Private Sector on Climate Change
In a statement issued on 13 March, the heads of the multilateral development banks, including ADB, underlined that energy is critical to global poverty reduction, the improvement of living standards, and meeting the Millennium Development Goals. However, the heavy dependence on fossil fuels not only has balance of payments implications, but also has serious local, regional and global environmental costs. They said a successful transition to a low-carbon economy will need the development of an equitable long-term global policy framework, which will stimulate the carbon market, and other incentives for early investments needed by the public and private sectors to develop and market low-carbon technologies.
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4. Partnership Doubles Grant Levels to Raise Water Investments for Urban Poor
ADB and UN-HABITAT have agreed to extend their 4 year-old partnership to 2011 in order to increase investments in safe drinking water and sanitation facilities for some of Asia’s poorest urban areas. The two organizations will each commit $10 million during the new cooperation phase. As part of the partnership, investments will be increased in urban water and sustainable sanitation, including environmentally sound solid waste management, expansion of wastes service coverage to the poorer neighborhoods, and slum upgrading and urban renewal. For more information, contact K.E. Seetharam, Principal Water Supply and Sanitation Specialist, RSDD, at water@adb.org.
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5. ADB Names new Vice-President, Special Project Facilitator
ADB’s Board of Directors of ADB has approved the appointment of Bindu N. Lohani as Vice-President (Finance and Administration) for a three-year term. Mr. Lohani, who most recently has served as Director General of ADB's Regional and Sustainable Development Department, has succeeded Ms. Khempheng Pholsena, whose term ended 4 April. ADB has also appointed Robert C. May as Special Project Facilitator. In this capacity, Mr. May oversees the Consultation Phase of the ADB’s Accountability Mechanism, which aims to actively respond to the concerns of people affected by ADB-assisted projects through fair, transparent, and consensus-based approaches.
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6. Coastal Communities in Pakistan Receive Support from ADB Project
ADB has approved a concessional $36 million loan for a project to reduce poverty and improve environmental management in six coastal sub-districts of Sindh, Pakistan. The project focus includes job creation, community-driven development, and methods for households to cope with environmental degradation in parts of Thatta and Badin districts, where over one million people live in poverty. Communities will decide on and use resources to collectively improve their circumstances. Sindh Province’s Coastal Development Authority will manage the project, working with NGOs, local and provincial government offices, and community groups. For more information, contact Betty Wilkinson, Rural Development Specialist, Central and West Asia Department (CWRD), at bwilkinson@adb.org.
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7. Grant Aims to Improve Livelihoods in the Eastern Nepal
The rural areas of Nepal's eastern hills face chronic poverty, with ethnic minorities, especially women, suffering among the worst. In this context, ADB has approved a $1 million grant to help 6,000 people engage in micro-enterprises, such as off-season farming and high-value crop production, production of packaging materials, semi-processing of fruits and vegetables, adding value to farm products, fishpond culture, and livestock rearing. The project, financed by the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR), financed by the Government of Japan, will cover Dhankuta, Morang, Saptari, and Sunsari districts of Nepal’s Eastern Development Region. For more information, contact Susanne Nebel, Rural Development Specialist, South Asia Department (SARD), at snebel@adb.org.
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8. Project Assists Women Handicraft Producers in Kyrgyz Republic
A $2 million JFPR grant will help develop the Kyrgyz Republic's handicraft industry. During the winter season, the wool-based cottage industry - which is run almost exclusively by women - is often the only means to earn income in remote rural areas. The grant project aims to improve the productivity, diversity, and quality of handicraft production, while establishing efficient marketing services and facilities. The project will also organize, renovate, and equip handicrafts centers in rural areas. For more information, contact Asel Chyngysheva, ADB Project Implementation Officer, CWRD, at achyngysheva@adb.org.
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9. Water User Groups in Aceh, Indonesia get a Boost
ADB is working closely with local communities to strengthen traditional water groups and rehabilitate irrigation systems in Aceh Province and Nias island in Indonesia. The project is helping 450 water user associations to enhance their role in operating and maintaining irrigation systems, as well as water resource management at the river basin level, More than 70,000 farming families will benefit from the $31.5 million project, which is part of a larger $291 million ADB grant that is helping to rebuild the areas devastated by the December 2004 earthquake and tsunami. For more information, contact Pieter Smidt, Head, ADB Extended Mission for Sumatra, at psmidt@adb.org.
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10. CPCS Announces Senior International Fellow Program
The Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (CPCS) at The City University of New York announces a fellowship opportunity for “third-sector” practitioners from outside the United States who are decision-makers in their professions. The 2007 program will focus on the topics of community foundations, and corporate and diaspora philanthropy. The deadline for application in 22 June 2007. For more information, contact Amal A. Muhammad, Program Associate, CPCS, at AMuhammad@gc-cuny.edu.
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11. United Kingdom Launches Governance and Transparency Fund
The United Kingdom’s Department for International Development has launched the £100 million Governance and Transparency Fund (GTF) to strengthen civil society and to help citizens hold their governments to account. The GTF will award grants of between 3 and 5 years to a wide range of organizations around the world, including media groups campaigning for free speech, women’s groups demanding greater rights for women in public life, faith groups fighting for their right to practice their religion peacefully, labor unions championing decent pay and working conditions, pro-democracy groups seeking to strengthen the parliamentary process, and NGOs.
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12. Toolkit Contributes to Technology Needs of NGOs
”NGO-in-a-box” offers a set of peer reviewed and selected free and open source software, tailored to the needs of NGOs. It provides organizations not only with software, but also with implementation scenarios and relevant materials to support this. The Open Publishing edition of NGO-in-a-box also includes tutorials and guides for producing, publishing, and distributing content. The edition, produced by Tactical Tech, in collaboration with iCommons, is aimed at small to medium sized non-profits, independent media organizations, free culture creators, and grassroots journalists with a particular emphasis on those in developing and transition countries.
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13. CSO Visitor: SNV International
This regular feature spotlights one of the many CSOs whose representatives have recently met with ADB staff at the institution’s headquarters in the Philippines.
SNV is a Netherlands-based international development organization that provides advisory services to nearly 1,800 local organizations in over 30 developing countries to support their fight against poverty. SNV is dedicated to a society where all people enjoy the freedom to pursue their own sustainable development. The organization’s advisors contribute to this by strengthening the capacity of local organizations.
SNV believes the basic purpose of development is to enlarge people's choices; to create an enabling environment for people to enjoy long, healthy, and creative lives. The fight against poverty needs strong organizations that serve the interests of the poor and are able to change the structures that sustain poverty. SNV works with organizations that operate at the district and provincial level and function as linking pins between national policies and frameworks and the people living in towns and communities. Its clients include private, governmental, and civil society organizations.
These organizations are served by locally present teams of national and international experts. SNV’s added value is that its experts combine their thematic expertise with skills in organizational development, partnership building, and institutional strengthening.
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14. Upcoming Events
A listing in this section does not imply ADB endorsement or availability of financing for participants.
- Participatory Approaches to Development Management, 7-25 May, Silang, Cavite, Philippines. Contact: Education and Training, IIRR; e-mail: education&training@iirr.org; tel: +632 886 4385; fax: +63 46 414 2420; website: http://www.iirr.org.
- Grant Management – How to Keep Your Donors Happy, 23-24 May, Oxford, England. Contact: Terry Lewis, Management Accounting for Non Governmental Organisations (Mango); e-mail: training@mango.org.uk; tel: +44 (0) 1823 664 900; fax: +44 (0) 1865 204 836; website: http://www.mango.org.uk/.
- Information and Communications Technology in Development, 23-25 May, Oxford, England. Contact: Olga Savage, Open Training Manager, INTRAC; e-mail: osavage@intrac.org; tel: +44 (0) 1865 263 055; website: http://www.intrac.org.
- Community Managed Disaster Risk Reduction, 4-15 June, Silang, Cavite, Philippines. Contact: Education and Training, IIRR; e-mail: education&training@iirr.org; tel: +632 886 4385; fax: +63 46 414 2420; website: http://www.iirr.org.
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