NGO Forum on ADB

		POLICY ADVOCACY

		PROJECT CAMPAIGNS

		COVERED AREAS

		PUBLICATIONS

		CAMPAIGN MATERIALS

		ARTICLES & BRIEFER

		EVENTS

Events

FAM | CAMPAIGNS AT THE AGM | REGIONAL MEETINGS | WORKSHOPS & CONFERENCES | SKILLSHARING

Forum Annual Meeting 2001

Twenty-two participants representing 14 non-government organizations (NGOs) – including regional groups -- in Cambodia, Japan, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines and Sri Lanka took part in the Regional Strategy Meeting of Asian NGOs on ADB (Asian Development Bank) Advocacy held on 30 March - 2 April 2001 in Subic, Olongapo City in the Philippines.

Organized by the NGO Forum on the ADB (FORUM), the regional meeting aimed to: (1) share highlights of country and regional activities directly or indirectly related to NGO issues on the ADB; (2) discuss current issues and updates on the ADB; and (3) if possible, harmonize action plans on ADB policy advocacy in the next one to three years, including the ADB Annual Meeting in Honolulu in May 2001.

The first two days of the meeting focused on the discussion of ADB projects and policy issues (e.g., poverty reduction, privatization, labor) and the results of recent in-country NGO capacity-building workshops on ADB advocacy. On the third day, the participants identified priority areas and plans which the group can be able to jointly initiate or work on in the next 1-3 years.

Participants agreed that the challenge for the NGO Forum is two-pronged: to assess/critique previous poverty reduction programs and influence country/regional/international level processes leading up to the current PRSP to ensure that pro-poor perspectives are integrated. A unity statement was crafted -- “Poverty is created as a consequence of the intervention of the ADB and other MDBs/IFIs in our communities. These institutions pushed us out of our lands, destroyed our traditional and indigenous sources and modes of livelihood, taken and destroyed our natural resources and environment, made our peoples powerless and hindered our full development potential.”

The strategy meeting also agreed to initiate a campaign on water privatization and commence necessary first steps – create or strengthen existing databases; link up with groups/networks already working on the issue; detail a 1-3 year action program.

SITE MAP | CONTACT US

Events

FAM | CAMPAIGNS AT THE AGM | REGIONAL MEETINGS | WORKSHOPS & CONFERENCES | SKILLSHARING