ADB was conceived in the early 1960s as a financial institution that would be Asian in character and foster economic growth and cooperation in one of the poorest regions in the world. A resolution passed at the first Ministerial Conference on Asian Economic Cooperation held by the United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East in 1963 set that vision on the way to becoming reality.
Features of Asian Development Bank
- ADB’s headquarters are in Manila, Philippines. The primary mission is to foster growth and cooperation among countries in the Asia-Pacific Region.
- It raises capital through the international bond markets. The ADB also relies on member contributions, retained earnings from lending, and the repayment of loans for funding of the organization.
- It provides assistance to its developing member countries, the private sector, and public-private partnerships through grants, loans, technical assistance, and equity investments to promote development.
- The ADB regularly facilitates policy dialogues and provides advisory services. They also use co-financing operations that tap a number of official, commercial, and export credit sources while providing assistance.
- The two largest shareholders of the Asian Development Bank are the United States and Japan. Although the majority of the Bank’s members are from the Asia-Pacific region, the industrialized nations are also well-represented.
- From 31 members at its establishment, ADB has grown to encompass 68 members, of which 49 are from within Asia and the Pacific and 19 outside.
India and ADB
- India was a founding member of ADB in 1966 and is now the bank’s fourth-largest shareholder. ADB’s operations in India commenced in 1986. India has been ADB’s top borrower since 2010.
- ADB’s current portfolio in India includes 69 sovereign loans amounting to $13.4 billion. In 2019, the bank committed a record $3.18 billion for 10 sovereign projects aimed to develop infrastructure and services in transport, energy, urban services, and agriculture and natural resources.
Major Projects in India
- The bank committed $490 million for a public–private partnership project to upgrade about 1,600 kilometers of state highways and major district roads in Madhya Pradesh, along with assistance for state highway improvements in Chhattisgarh ($350 million) and Rajasthan ($190 million).
- To improve urban mobility and decongest crowded suburban rail systems in Mumbai, ADB committed $926 million to operationalize two new lines for the Mumbai Metro Rail System.
- ADB committed $206 million to develop water supply and sewerage infrastructure in five cities of Tamil Nadu.
- The bank committed a $250 million loan to Energy Efficiency Services Limited to expand investments in energy smart meters, distributed solar photovoltaic systems, and electric vehicles.
- ADB committed $451 million to extend power availability to emerging manufacturing centers and help develop the Chennai–Kanyakumari Industrial Corridor in Tamil Nadu, which is part of the ADB-supported East Coast Economic Corridor (ECEC) that extends to Kolkata.
- ADB committed $91 million to strengthen the capacity of state and basin institutions for integrated water resources management in Karnataka.
- ADB undertook strategic studies to identify growth pathways, new investment opportunities, and policy advice in sectors covering key industrial nodes in the ECEC, North Eastern Region Economic Corridor, coastal shipping, and the education system.
Source: ADB website
