Asia's Path to Prosperity

Industrialization must be an essential part of the growth formula if Asian countries are to prosper and avoid the 'middle income trap,' says ADB report. Read More

Asia’s Growing Elderly Population - ADB’s Take

As Asia is on track to become the oldest region in the world, ADB is helping countries prepare for this vast demographic shift. Read More

Safety Nets Needed for the 'Missing Middle'

Fast-growing middle-income countries in Asia and the Pacific need to increase support for the poor and vulnerable. Read More

Live Chat on Social Protection

What is being done to protect the poor and vulnerable in Asia and the Pacific? Join experts Sri Wening Handayani and Michelle Domingo-Palacpac in an online discussion. Read More

Reducing Risks, Increasing Opportunities

Income poverty has fallen in Asia and the Pacific as millions of people have benefited from the extraordinary economic gains of the past two decades but progress has been highly uneven, leaving one in three Asians poor and vulnerable to economic, social and environmental risks.

During 1996–2008, ADB provided $2.3 billion in loans to help developing member countries (DMCs) increase their social protection programs so that those on the lower rungs of the economic ladder could also benefit from the region’s growth.

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Facts and Figures

3.1 billion
people live in Asia and the Pacific, half of the world's population

900 million
people in Asia and the Pacific comprise the poor

40%
of the population in Asia and the Pacific are below 19 years old

What's New

News | 3 Jul 2013
Asia and Pacific's 'Missing Middle' Lacks Vital Social Protection

Event | 18 Jul 2013
Live Chat - Social Protection: A Key Instrument for Inclusive Growth

News | 1 Jul 2013
Financial Uncertainty, Destructive Start to Monsoon Highlight Asia's Growing Vulnerability

Event | 19 Jun 2013 - 21 Jun 2013
GDN 14th Annual Global Development Conference

Event | 16 Apr 2013 - 19 Apr 2013
South-South Learning on Conditional Cash Transfers

Publications

1 Sep 2013
Safety Nets and Food Programs in Asia: A Comparative Perspective

1 Aug 2013
Оценка электронной системы пенсионных выплат в Таджикистане

1 Aug 2013
An Evaluation of the Electronic Pension Payment System in Tajikistan

View all Publications

Project Briefs

Dec 2011
Improving Labor Market through Higher Education Reform Project in Mongolia
Dec 2011
Supporting the Development of a Social Protection Framework in Nepal
Dec 2011
Reducing Child Malnutrition through Social Protection in Nepal

All Social Protection Project Briefs

Sight, Sounds, People