The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the government of Laos signed grant agreements on October 16 worth $125.5 million in total for three projects in the tourism and urban sectors. “Vibrant, liveable cities and towns play an important role in the development of industry and services, particularly manufacturing, agro-business, and tourism”, said Yasushi Negishi, ADB […]
A new study contends that technology can greatly improve the effectiveness of governance, and a new assessment of Asean governments has been made with tech factored in. The World Governance Indicators, compiled by The World Bank, ranked governments on a scale of 0 to 100 in terms of government effectiveness. Singapore scored a 100, while […]
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved additional financing of US$30.5 million, in the form of a grant, to help the Lao PDR government improve water supply and sanitation. The financing, which is in addition to a $35 million loan the ADB approved in 2013, will make it possible for the Lao PDR government to […]
• Editorial
The Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) countries have made stunning progress over the past quarter century. Once plagued by poverty, they are now economic success stories. The GMS Economic Cooperation Program (GECP) has contributed significantly to this transformation. Since it was established in 1992 as a means to enhance economic relations and promote regional cooperation, its […]
• Editorial
In the last 20 years, rapid economic growth in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) has reduced poverty and brought prosperity to many of its 420 million people. Much of the growth has relied on natural resources, which generate up to half of total wealth in some GMS countries. But the “grow-now-clean-up-later” approach has worsened environmental […]
• Editorial
Cambodia recently made the transition from a low income to a lower middle-income country, according to the World Bank’s rankings. This is good news, but it poses a question: does Cambodia need to rethink its model of export-driven economic growth, as preferential access for its exports to developed countries is gradually reduced, or as aid flows diminish? The answer […]
• Editorial
Infrastructure is essential for development. Roads, railways, ports, and power supplies have helped drive Asia’s growth, allowing its people to get to work and its products to reach markets. For this momentum to continue the region’s existing stock of infrastructure must be upgraded. A new generation of transport networks, energy facilities, and water and sanitation […]
The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Board of Directors has approved a $70 million loan to help provide a more efficient, safe, and disaster resilient transport sector in Cambodia, particularly by improving national roads in the provinces of Prey Veng, Siem Reap, and Svay Rieng along the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Southern Economic Corridor. “In Cambodia […]
Construction of the Nam Ngum hydropower plant started in 1968. Harnessing the power of the country’s largest watershed, the first hydropower plant in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic was producing 30 megawatts of electricity within four years. Today it sits at the base of a still growing hydropower cascade comprising four active power plants that […]
Asia’s economic growth over the last decade has been relentless, bringing with it a rising population and an influx of people from the countryside to the cities in search of prosperity. These trends are not expected to abate. By 2025 the total population of the Asia Pacific region should reach about 4.4 billion. And over […]
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $123.3 million loan for a new water tunnel to help modernise Manila’s water supply, reducing the risk of shortages as demand for water rises in tandem with the city’s booming population. According to Paul van Klaveren, senior urban development specialist with ADB’s Southeast Asia Department: “The Angat […]
The Asian Development Bank’s (ADBs) operations – comprising loan approvals and grants, technical assistance, and cofinancing – reached an all-time high of US$ 27.15 billion in 2015, an increase of about 19 per cent over the $22.89 billion in 2014, according to provisional figures released today. The ADBs approvals of loans and grants, sovereign (government) and […]