Asian Development Bank
THE Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank established in 1966 with the stated objective to promote economic and social development in Asian and Pacific countries through loans and technical assistance.
ADB is a multilateral development financial institution owned by 67 members, 48 from the region and 19 from other parts of the globe. The bank is based in the Philippines (Manila).
ADB’s stated vision is a region free of poverty. Its mission is to help its developing member countries reduce poverty and improve the quality of life of their citizens.
ADB is dominated by its biggest shareholders Japan and the USA, and increasingly by China and India. Voting power is determined by size of shareholding.
Throughout most of its history the bank has operated on a project basis, specifically in the areas of infrastructure investment, agricultural development and loans to basic industries in member countries.
Governorship of ADB
The highest policy-making body of the bank is the Board of Governors composed of one representative from each member state. The Board of Governors elects the Board of Directors and also the bank’s President.
The president has a term of office lasting five years, and may be re-elected. Traditionally the President has always been Japanese. The current President is Haruhiko Kuroda.
Criticism
The ADB says it is conceivable that once all of Asia-Pacific reaches a certain level of living standard the bank will be wound down or reconfigured.
Many environmentalists say the day when that happens can’t come soon enough.
Oxfam Australia has criticized the ADB of insensitivity to local communities. “Operating at a global and international level, these banks can undermine people’s human rights through projects that have detrimental outcomes for poor and marginalized communities.”
The bank also received criticism from the United Nations Environmental Program, stating in a report that “much of the growth has bypassed more than 70 percent of its rural population, many of whom are directly dependent on natural resources for livelihoods and incomes.”
The ADB has been severely censored by numerous NGOs particularly with regard to the bank’s role in the construction of hydropower dams and roads.
_________________________________________________________________