Board of Directors' Report - Year in Review

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2002 in Review: Board of Directors' Report

Reconstructing nations

Supporting regional cooperation

Reorganizing internally

Adopting new policies and procedures

Reviewing existing policies

Broadening development partnerships

Undertaking its Work

Board committees

Annual Report 2002

Adopting new policies and procedures

Policy, Financial, and Administrative Papers

Accreditation of ADB as Observer at the United Nations General Assembly 5 February*
Use of Price as a Criterion for Selection of Consultants 19 February
Financing Technical Assistance (2002–2004) 27 February
Capital Expenditure Proposal for the New Loan Accounting and Asset-Liability Management Systems 5 April
Review of the Asian Development Bank’s Income Outlook and Allocation of 2001 Net Income 27 March
Borrowing Program for 2002/2003 30 April
Review of the Asian Development Bank’s Liquidity Policy 11 June
Review of Afghanistan’s Classification Under ADB’s Graduation Policy 28 June*
Cooperation with the Government of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland—Poverty Reduction Cooperation Fund 4 July*
The Role of Vice-Presidents at the Asian Development Bank 2 August
Establishment of a Resident Mission in Papua New Guinea 15 August*
Policy on Education 30 August
The Country Classification of Turkmenistan 8 October*
Work Program and Budget Framework (2003–2005) 15 October
Establishment of a Resident Mission in Afghanistan 31 October*
Environment Policy 8 November
Pricing Local Currency Loans in Private Sector Operations 4 November*
Review of Cost-Sharing Limits for Project Financing as an Element of ADB’s 1998 Graduation Policy 28 November
Establishment of a Resident Mission in Tajikistan 4 December
Borrowing Program for 2003 11 December
ADB Institute—Work Program and Budget for 2003 13 December
Budget of the Asian Development Bank for 2003 13 December

Working Papers

Review of the Management and Effectiveness of Technical Assistance Operations of the Asian Development Bank 19 July
Enhancing the Asian Development Bank’s Role in Combating Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism 13 September
Framework for Pacific Subregional Offices 21 October
Review of the Asian Development Bank’s Lending and Borrowing Limitations 22 October

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* Approved on a no-objection basis.

The Board of Directors reviewed and approved several policy, financial, and administrative papers in 2002 (see Box on page 4), including ADB’s lending and borrowing limitations; establishing resident missions in Afghanistan, Papua New Guinea, and Tajikistan; Afghanistan’s classification under ADB’s graduation policy; and the country classification for Turkmenistan (see Box on the Classification of ADB’s Developing Members). Three policies, approved in 2002, propose guidelines for ensuring ADB’s liquidity, providing better access to education, and assessing the environment.

The main objective of ADB’s liquidity policy, which the Board of Directors approved in June, is to ensure ADB’s capacity to meet its cash requirements even in the event of a major disruption in its cash flow. The cash flow-driven liquidity requirements addressed in the policy include a new minimum level of liquidity, ceiling on discretionary liquidity, and funding for the core liquidity portfolio. For more on ADB’s liquidity policy, see the Management’s Discussion and Analysis chapter.

In approving the education policy in August, the Board of Directors furthered ADB’s commitment to helping DMCs achieve universal primary education and gender equity in primary, secondary, and tertiary education. The policy pro- motes increased equity and access, improved educational quality, better resource mobilization, and greater use of innovative technologies, such as information and communication technology (ICT), in schools in the Asia and Pacific region. The policy also encourages strengthened partnerships with civil society, including NGOs and local communities. For more on ADB’s 2002 activities in the education sector, see the Operational Priorities and Performance chapter. For more on the education policy, see http://www.adb.org/Documents/Policies/Education.

In November, the Board of Directors approved a new Environment Policy to help ADB meet the challenges of the region’s rapidly increasing environmental degradation. Consultations with stakeholders, including a Board seminar, country workshops, and several rounds of interdepartmental review, were incorporated in the policy. The policy addresses the need for environmental assessment at the time of country programming, structured consultation in the conduct of environmental assessments, and monitoring and compliance with environmental requirements during project implementation. It underscores the need to view environmental assessment as an ongoing rather than a onetime event (see http://www.adb.org/Environment/envpol/).

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Reorganizing internally

Reviewing existing policies

Catalog

Adopting new policies and procedures

Policy, Financial, and Administrative Papers