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p. 2 of 5 BACK | NEXT Board of Directors' Report: 2001 Year in Review Strengthening the framework Broadening partnerships General operations Board committees

Annual Report 2001

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Strengthening the framework

The strategies and policies approved in 2001, discussed in this Annual Report, resulted from consultation with governments, nongovernment organizations (NGOs), other international organizations, and stakeholders throughout the Asian and Pacific region, as well as from internal reviews of priorities and operations. Interconnected and intertwined, these policies strengthen ADB’s framework.

In March, the Board approved the Long-Term Strategic Framework (LTSF) 2001–2015, a 15-year plan for ADB’s all-out assault on poverty. Drawing from the 1999 Poverty Reduction Strategy and the 2000 Private Sector Development Strategy, the LTSF focuses on achieving sustainable economic growth, inclusive social development, and good governance.

The LTSF sets out fundamental operating principles for reducing poverty, including ensuring DMCs own their poverty reduction programs, enhancing strategic partnerships, and measuring development impacts.

The Board also approved the Medium-Term Strategy (MTS) 2001–2005—the bridge between the LTSF and the activities ADB will undertake in its DMCs over the next 5 years. Designed to enhance the development impact of ADB assistance, the MTS advocates stronger ADB commitment in addressing the institutional and policy issues that support its thematic priorities. The MTS strengthens ADB’s leadership role in regional cooperation—one of ADB’s unique strengths—and reiterates the importance of economic growth in reducing poverty. The MTS also advocates investments in the physical infrastructure necessary to promote growth and productivity in both rural and urban areas, as well as social infrastructure and services for human development to support pro-poor growth.

The MTS is translated into action by individual country strategy and program (CSP) reports. The CSP and CSP updates—developed in cooperation with each DMC—emphasize a countrywide approach to development and ensure a DMC perspective for ADB operations.

Several operational procedures and policies were approved in 2001. Acknowledging the powerful force of information and communication technology (ICT) in shaping the social and economic development of Asia and the Pacific, ADB adopted a strategic approach to assist its DMCs in seizing the opportunities created by ICT. The new strategy—Toward E-Development in Asia and the Pacific: A Strategic Approach for Information and Communication Technology—creates an enabling environment for ICT development, builds the human resources to promote ICT literacy, and develops the applications and information content for ADB-supported activities.

Poverty is reduced more extensively and rapidly during periods of fast economic growth. The private sector, through investment and job creation, can play a vital role in reducing poverty. In 2000, the Board approved ADB’s first comprehensive Private Sector Development Strategy, which confirmed the role of ADB’s private sector operations in catalyzing private investment through direct financing and risk mitigation instruments. In 2001, the Board affirmed ADB support for infrastructure projects, funds, and financial intermediaries, and ensured that such support would be oriented toward achieving greater development impact and demonstration effects.

Regional cooperation, sustainable growth, and private sector development were further promoted with the approval in 2001 of the Pacific Strategy for the New Millennium. The strategy focuses on streamlining the public sectors and boosting private sector investment as the way to tackle physical and economic vulnerability and governance problems.

Water for All: The Water Policy of the Asian Development Bank, approved by the Board in 2001, also promotes regional cooperation. It emphasizes that water is a vital economic good that needs careful management both to sustain growth and to reduce poverty. The policy stresses the need for integrated cross-sector approaches to water management and development. Conservation and participatory approaches to protecting water resources are at the heart of the policy.

ADB’s policy foundation was further strengthened with the approval in September 2001 of the Social Protection Strategy. Integral to ADB’s goal of reducing poverty, the strategy advocates helping vulnerable populations better manage risks and develop their human capital.

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