Reform Agenda

The implementation of the action plan was completed in January 2006. The initiative has been mainstreamed in ADB operations. The revised design and monitoring framework (DMF) approach, guidelines for which are also available in Chinese, Russian, Dari and a second edition in English which was published in June 2007, is helping stakeholders to participate in project design; identify project results, performance targets, and indicators; and manage [projects] for development results.

So far more than 500 executing agencies in 22 developing member countries and 140 national facilitators have been trained in results-focused project design and management. As part of the PPMS capacity building program, Central Operations Services Office conducted training programs on the preparation of DMFs, problem trees and indicators with a total of 618 participants.

The PPMS curriculum will be further developed over time, building on experience and an outcome evaluation survey with participants. Project readiness filters were adopted for all projects being prepared. All project Reports and Recommendations to the President are now required to include a Status Report on Project Readiness Criteria as a supplementary appendix.

The review of the 2002 reorganization was completed in November 2004. Follow-up actions were completed as of December 2006. Some of major accomplishments were the

1. reorganization of the Regional and Sustainable Development Department
2. establishment of the Office of Regional Economic Integration
3. realignment of the regional departments [ PDF ]
4. establishment of the independent Risk Management Unit
5. upgrading of external relations from an office to a department
6. clarification on sector/thematic focal point assignments
7. establishment of the communities of practice

Other actions, such as the improvement of staff skills mix and strengthening of resident missions, etc. are broad and open-ended recommendations and are being undertaken as required.

The action plan was formulated and initiated in September 2004. Harmonization of ADB’s operational procedures with nongovernment organizations, other multilateral development banks and bilateral donors is a long-term and ongoing activity.

The action plan covers the following areas:

1. evaluation
2. environment and social safeguards
3. financial management
4. capacity building, governance and anticorruption
5. procurement including consulting services
6. gender
7. managing for development results
8. private sector
9. information and communication technology
10. legal documentation
11. disbursement
12. other emerging areas

The effective partnerships enable better synergies and coordination, reduce duplication, and optimize the use of resources available for development. Partnership has become an underlying principle for all aspects of ADB operations and initiatives.

Reducing bunching is a long-term activity and is being undertaken to maximize ADB’s operational effectiveness and tighten planning and monitoring of Board schedules. Activities to limit bunching include:

1. the provision of periodic reports to Management on the emerging status regarding the scheduling of project approvals in the 4th quarter
2. the inclusion of bunching issues in the Management Committee meetings on operations
3. the adoption of a checklist to monitor the status of each project-readiness filter before each project-processing stage by regional departments
4. the rescheduling of items for Board consideration to the following year when needed to manage the Board calendar

In 2007, 17 items initially scheduled for Board discussion during the last quarter, including 1 CPS and 12 loans, grants, and private sector operations, were postponed to the 1st quarter of 2007.

Adopted in April 2005, this policy has increased accountability and transparency. It is a long-term, ongoing activity. Briefings have been held for staff who are unsure what information and documents need to be disclosed and when, or how to use the disclosure management systems. The policy commits the institution to making information proactively available and to responding to ad hoc information requests. The new disclosure requirements provide ADB stakeholders with much better access to ADB information.

More project information is available during project preparation and during implementation. As a significant step toward greater transparency, project appraisal reports of private sector operations are disclosed after excising confidential information, and all social and environmental information is released.

Minutes of all of ADB’s Board meetings and the chair’s summaries of Board discussions on ADB policies and strategies are posted on the ADB website. Moreover, country partnership and regional cooperation strategies are disseminated in draft form to increase country ownership. Posted online are ADB’s core administrative documents, such as ADB’s budget.

ADB was also the first multilateral development bank to disclose its country performance assessment ratings beginning in 2005. ADB was recently assessed along with 30 other organizations in the 2007 Global Accountability Report*, published by One World Trust, and received a perfect (100%) score on transparency good practice because of its Public Communication Policy.