NEWS ARCHIVES
Charting Cancun and beyond
MANILA, 19 Jul 10 -- Six months from now, what remained incomplete in Copenhagen may finally be resolved in Cancun. However, civil society organizations still fear that the sustained operation of the ...
CSOs score ADB for transparency failure of communication policy
MANILA, 20 Jun 10 -- Local and international civil society organizations urged the ADB to be more transparent in its Public Communication Policy. The Philippines' leading business newspaper takes...
NGO Forum doubts seriousness of ADB's communication policy review
MANILA, 16 June 10 -- Forum expressed its dissatisfaction
with the ADB's draft revised Public Communication Policy (PCP). "We question the
ADB's good faith coming into the...
Sharing spirit of women’s persistence toward justice development
KALASIN, 2 JUN 10 -- Women have become vulnerable due to projects funded by the ADB. Tipakson Manpati talks about the role women could play in struggles against development-induced gender injustice.
To be or not to be
DUSHANBE, 14 May 10 -- Tajik CSOs criticized ADB's local office for brushing off their request for an actual draft of the country partnership strategy as basis for consultation. "None of the participa...
ADB turns deaf ear on human security issue
MOSCOW, 12 MAY 10 -- ADB's decision to extend $1-billion loan to Uzbekistan was challenged by human rights defenders. Fergana Ru higlights the multilateral's bank inaction on the ongoing human rights ...
43rd ADB AGM: Tarnished by Tashkent (2/2)
MANILA, 5 May 10 -- Despite the maddening thoughts of people tortured, of men and women repeatedly raped in cells, journalists being murdered, the ADB still sees the opportunities that will be benefic...
Twisted logic of ADB on gender empowerment: Yet another lip service
JAKARTA, 5 May 10 -- The ADB put ‘gender equity’ as a sloganeering flagship, while projects are implemented without seriously considering the plight of women. Know how women get sidelined by the i...
Protests thwarted during meeting of Asian bankers in Tashkent
TASHKENT, 4 May 10 -- As the annual meeting opens in Tashkent, local authorities prevented a group of Uzbek activists from holding a peaceful rally in front of the venue of the meeting, the Internatio...
Protest vs. ADB’s role in privatization of essential services
MANILA, 4 May 10 -- As the ADB is holding its annual meeting in Tashkent, Freedom from Debt Coalition held a protest action outside the bank’s headquarters. FDC challenges the role of the ADB in the...
43rd ADB AGM: Tarnished by Tashkent (1/2)
MANILA, 4 May 10 -- While the ADB has formally opened its annual meeting in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, more and more questions are being raised over the bank's judgment call. The AGM will on one of the blo...
Mainstreaming development or alleviating poverty in Central Asia and Caucasus?
MANILA, 4 May 10 -- In Thaskent, the ADB is focusing on its regional development program, its core strategy to eradicate poverty in Central Asian and Caucasus. However, the bank's projects in the regi...
Insidious subtleties, exploiting opportunities in Central Asia and the South Caucasus
MANILA, 3 May 10 --
Under Strategy 2020, the Bank puts high premium on regional cooperation
and integration as one of the major strategic agendas. However, a wide
gap between reality and theory ...
A desperate letter as ADB violates policies in Azerbaijan Road
BISHKEK, 2 May 10 -- Local villagers in Azerbaijan claim, an ADB-funded road project will only destroy their lives, increase poverty incidence in their community and adversely impact of the environmen...
CA&C members talk about annual meeting venue
BISHKEK/MANILA , 1 May 10 -- As the 43rd annual meeting of the ADB formally opened today in Tashkent, Forum members from Central Asia share their views about the venue of the event.
Bank watchdog boycotts ADB annual meeting in Tashkent
MANILA, 28 APR 10 -- Watchdog, NGO Forum on the ADB, announced today a
boycott of the Asian Development Bank's annual meeting in Tashkent,
Uzbekistan this coming May. The move "is not only non-trans...
Power Shift in Climate Justice
MARIKINA, 22 Apr 10 -- Until now, the havoc caused by typhoon Ketsana remains in the memory of the people. "It is not true that the typhoon was a great equalizer. There are rent-seeking individuals an...
Uprising in Kyrgyzstan: ADB and World Bank must be held accountable
BISHKEK, 10 April 10 -- The common belief is the US and the Russian Federation are not the cause of the uprising, but the IFIs are the reason behind this dark situation of Kyrgyzstan. Local groups dem...
Celebrating the body, celebrating resistance
MANILA, 29 Mar 10 -- Dawan Chantarahesdee spoke about the important role of women in discussing crucial issues with the community in non-aggressive ways.Performance of Persistence featured the creativ...
Affected people take center stage at FAM opening
SAN PABLO, 26 Mar 10 -- Affected people narrated their experiences on the ground as the Forum Annual Meeting opened today. Over 80 members of the NGO Forum on the ADB came.
Bank watchdog to monitor Climate Investment Funds
MANILA, 19 Mar 10 -- NGO Forum on the ADB said it will watch closely the operations of the climate investment funds. "The CIFs have great potential to undermine the multilateral process under the UNFC...
Reparations not loans
MANILA, 19 Mar 10 -- As the ADB and the World Bank concluded their Climate Investment Funds (CIF) Partnership Forum, civil society groups said the multilateral development banks should take responsibi...
Forum selects new Exec Director
18 Mar 10 -- After long but fruitful deliberations, the International Committee of the NGO Forum on the ADB selected Dr. Avilash Roul to lead the Forum's battles in the years ahead as the new Executiv...
At the heart[h] of Melamchi
MELAMCHI, 9 Mar 10 -- In a remote area of the Sindhupalchok District,
Nina talks about a local community being left out in the dark about the
proposed ADB-funded dam project. Villages, especially ...
ADB's medium, ADB's message
KATHMANDU, 28 Feb 10 -- Affected communities were the last to know about the displacement and disaster that will be brougth by the project. Not to mention, the benefits of both the Melamchi and West S...
No consultation but condoms from the ADB in Melamchi
KATHMANDU, 27 Feb 10 -- Instead of being consulted on the Bank's plan on their community, farmers where given condoms and mosquito nets. Though the ADB adopted its information disclosure policy, affec...
Accessible and accountable ASEAN?
MANILA, 24 Feb 10 -- Filipino women groups expressed their apprehension
on the language and content of the rules of procedures (ROP) of the
ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights. They a...
ADB watchdog calls for stronger, more responsive disclosure policy
MANILA, 16 Feb 10 -– With the launch of ADB's Public Communication Policy review today, the NGO Forum on the ADB said the bank has to recognize that public access to information is not an option but...
The people's right to know
YOGYAKARTA, 12 Feb 10 -- Reality on the ground shows the kind of inclusive and transparent information disclosure the ADB is talking about. Abby Don tells a story about how project-affected communitie...
Central Asia at COP 15: One step ahead
COPENHAGEN, 20 Jan 10 -- Though Central Asian countries are new to the negotiations, they have been proactive in addressing the issue of climate change. One has expressed its intention to implement in...
Forum announces search for next Forum Executive Director
MANILA, 19 Jan 10 -- Do you have what it takes? Be part of a great and growing network. Forum is inviting all interested, highly motivated individuals to see if they can become the next Forum Executiv...
ADB releases Safeguards OM
MANILA, 11 Jan 10 -- Ten days before the new policy becomes effective, the ADB released its operations manual on its newly approved Safeguards. Last July, Forum submitted its detailed comments on ADB'...
West Seti: A change in setup
KATHMANDU, 7 Jan 10 -- China is investing in the West Seti Hydropower project in Nepal. According to the WSH, the Chinese state-run company has signed an agreement, buying 51 percent of the shares of ...
Watchdog questions ADB's involvement in Copenhagen
MANILA, 14 Dec 09 -- As climate talks continue, Bank monitor challenges the ADB's participation in Copenhagen. "The very projects the ADB has identified as harmful to the climate, they also tout as so...
Gender into climate policy
COPENHAGEN, 9 Dec 09 -- Women groups today releases gender toolkit in Copenhagen
which promotes the integration of women and gender issues included in
decision-making in tackling climate change. “...
Responding to climate crisis in Asia and the Pacific
COPENHAGEN, 7 Dec 09 -- While the world leaders are finding ways to address climate change, the ADB seems to remove the hurdles for private sector to take part in resolving the issue of global warming...
Advancing the peoples' agenda in Copenhagen
COPENHAGEN, 3 Dec 09 -- As governments of the world head to Copenhagen to discuss and decide what's in store for all of us as we face the challenges and threats by increasing global temperature, the P...
Water project displaces hundreds of Indonesians
BEKASI, 2 Dec 09 -- Hundreds of Indonesians living along the Kalimalang Canal
were displaced. Local shops serving as primary source of income for
local families were demolished. According to local N...
Handling the Symptoms but not the Disease
MANILA, 25 Nov 09--The ADB
last week conducted a briefing session with civil society on its
accountability mechanism...
Women groups adopt Beijing platform
MANILA, 16 Nov 09 -- Close
to 700 women and girls representing women's movements from Asia and the
Pacific adopted the Beijing Platform for Action. It is seen as a
strategic document promoting wome...
Living better with flood
CHENNAI, 29 Oct 09 -- A local NGO redefines the meaning of assisting flood-prone communities. Here's one of Forum's very own, Ravindranath, talking about how important it is to consider local technolo...
Bangladesh, beware once again
28 Oct 09 -- As the ADB signs another loan project for Bangladesh that will support the country's small-scale water services, Voice calls on civil society to stay alert. "The Asian Development Bank ha...
Women calls for climate justice
26 Oct 09 -- As a result of their training in Bangkok, Thailand, women from various Asian countries declare their progressive positions on issues surrounding climate change highlighting the central ro...
No Turning Back to a Demanding Movement
22 Oct 09 -- A women's conference on the world not a world conference on women, Noeleen Heyzer, UN Undersecretary General and UN Economic
and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Executive Secr...
ADB grants with harder terms
14 Oct 09 -- Intending to support Bangladesh cope with the impact of the recent global economic crisis, the ADB is providing a $744-million loan to the South Asian country. However, local groups point...
A road to ply
22 Sep 09 -- A road project in Karasuu region with the aim of reducing poverty and boosting Kyrgyz Republic's economic growth seemed to have failed complying with the Bank's policy on public consultat...
ADB-hindering or helping?
15 Sep 09 -- As the G20 Finance Ministers meeting in London ended, the Australian government will increase its capital contribution to the ADB by 200 percent. Oxfam Australia calls for increased monit...
ADB's dubious Kyrgyz agriculture development project
16 Sep 09 -- A high profile case of corruption or poor implementation by the executing agency could have been the reason for the cancellation of the ADB's agriculture project in the Kyrgyz Republic. W...
ADB's mission creep
11 Sep 09 -- The Wall Street Journal takes on the ADB’s Countercyclical Support Facility saying, it looks less like fulfillment of its mission to help its developing member countries reduce poverty ...
Protest against offshore block deal turned sour
8 Sep 09 -- Prof. Anu Muhammad, one of the lead campaigners who helped stop the implementation of the Phulbari Coal Power project, during a protest against moves by the Bangladeshi government to hand ...
Past forward
11 Aug 09, Kathmandu -- Learning from the past for the present. Inspite of the problems with previous projects, from Arun 3 to Khimti, Kali Gandaki A and Melamchi mess, the Asian Development Bank is a...
Revisiting: IPs oppose West Seti Hydro project
10 Aug 09 -- Tharu indigenous community in Nepal expressed their strong opposition to the ADB-funded West Seti Hydroelectric Project during the Bank’s annual meeting in Bali. What has happened to th...
Climate and peoples’ livelihood
5 Aug 09 -- What role does an international institution like the ADB
has to play on the issue of climate change? Inspite strong pressure
from civil society to support renewable energy, the ADB has c...
Indian groups express concern over govt climate plan
4 Aug 09 -- Forum has just rolled out its new climate program which aims to accelerate the mainstreaming of climate change in national policy formulation. This letter is a very good paper that demonst...
Clash of the Asian Giants
3 Aug 09 -- With the approval of the Arunachal Pradesh irrigation project, ADB is now being criticized for acting on a political dispute between India and China. Has it really intervened or not?
FDC opposes ADB coal plant
2 Aug 09 -- The Freedom from Debt Coalition expressed its strong opposition against the approval of the USD120-million loan of the ADB for the construction of a 200-MW coal-fired power plant in Cebu, ...
Forum withholds support for final guidelines
23 Jul 09 -- The Forum withholds its support for the updated Safeguard Policy citing ADB's failure to follow principles in the UN Declarations on the Rights of the IP, and weakened provisions on carbo...
Road project brings despair among villagers
21 Jul 09 -- Local villagers of Astghadzor complained about ADB's road project for substandard quality, inadequate design and lack of public consultation. EcoLur investigates the ADB project in Armeni...
Forum calls for vigilance on Safeguards implementation
20 Jul 09 -- The Forum today said it would have welcomed the approval of the updated Safeguard Policy had the remaining dilutions been addressed. However, it said that policy weaknesses may be remedie...
ADB's capital resource increase to further marginalize the poor
17 Jul 09 -- Reacting to the Asian Development Bank's 2008 Development Effectiveness Review, the Forum said the ADB's projects have not contributed to development effectiveness but only highlighted ma...
A man for this season?
15 Jul 09 -- Inspite global calls for increased regulations around financing, the ADB has continued to increase its private sector operations. Known to many of us, Walden Bello, Freedom from Debt Coal...
Bank watchdog submits comments on Safeguards R-Paper
14 Jul 09 -- Forum today submits its comments on the ADB's Safeguard Policy Statement Review Paper to the Bank's board of directors. Though the R-paper represents significant progress from earlier SPS...
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Letter from Himachal Pradesh
10 Jul 09 -- A powerful story comes from IAP showing how the IFC fared with its performance standards on involuntary resettlement and land acquisition as it implemented its hydroelectric project in Hi...
Armenia's road to perdition
23 June 09 -- In Yerevan, an ADB-funded road project has been tarnished by corruption. Worse, people are complaining about the project's lack of public participation.
Saga of ADB’s impacts on peoples’ lives in Tajikistan
22 June 09 -- Somewhere in Vahdat district in Tajikistan, local villagers claimed not being informed about an ADB-funded irrigation project, contrarty to the Bank's declaration it has conducted stakeh...
We do not remember when we had normal roads, Sevan's farmers say
18 June 09 -- Local villagers complain about the questionable technical design of a 222.8-km ADB-funded road project in Astakhadzor village. Skeptics also raise concerns over the real beneficiaries of...
ADB uses climate crisis to fund harmful projects
17 June 09 -- Local NGOs today in Jakarta criticize the ADB for using the climate crisis as an excuse to put aside their responbility to follow its Safeguard Policies. They further claim that ADB proj...
ADB hit for double talking on climate issue
17 Jun 09 -- "It's
hypocritical of the bank to sound the alarm on the climate crisis and
at the same time fund the problem," NGO Forum on the ADB executive
director Red Constantino said. Reuters ta...
Alien encounter escalates at ADB Climate meeting to call on GMA to go to Copenhagen
17 June 09 -- The aliens came back again during the second day of the high level dialogue on climate and clean energy at the ADB. Now carrying translated messages which said "Take me to your leader!,"...
ADB privatization policy aggravates climate crisis in the Philippines – FDC
16 June 09 -- Freedom from Debt Coalition said the privatization of the power industry is not only one of major reasons for the extremely high rates of electricity, but a policy prescription that aggr...
Alien encounter at ADB energy meet
16 June 09 -- Have aliens invaded the ADB? Indeed, an intergalactic protest action happened in front of the Asian Development Bank's headquarters in Manila, calling for strong solutions to combat clim...
NGO chides ADB on eve of climate gab
15 June 09 -- The bank watchdog, NGO Forum on ADB, hit the Asian Development Bank for taking "tentative" steps on a matter gravely affecting the world. The Philippine leading business newspaper featur...
Intl groups slam climate inaction as ADB energy confab starts
15 June 09 -- International and local civil society organizations today pressed for decisive climate action in a press briefing on the heels of the recently concluded global warming talks in Bonn, Ger...
Where does Azersu spend the credits allocated by the government?
12 Jun 09 -- Mirvari Gahramanli of the Oil Workers' Rights Protection Organization talks about public control and transparency in the implementation of ADB-funded water and sanitation rehabilitation p...
Tajik NGOs hold RTD on ADB
9 June 09 -- Local NGOs hit the ADB for its funded projects in Tajikistan for being not completely effective and inexpedient spending of funds. In a roundtable discussion held in Dushanbe, NGOs furthe...
Let them be responsible before the ADB?
5 June 09 -- Local community alleges the ADB-funded Kazakh section of the Western Europe-China highway with multiple violations. "A road of the century is being built with violations," said representa...
A glimpse of the 43rd ADB annual meeting
4 June 09 -- During its 42nd Annual Meeting in Bali last May, the ADB announced that the next annual meeting will be held in Uzbekistan. Civil society criticized the move. "Uzbekistan is like the Burm...
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Vidya Dinker of the NGO Task Force on ADB expresses her view on the venue of the next ADB annual meeting in 2010. Calling it as the Burma of Central Asia, she said the Bank might as well hold its annu...
ADB Bali meetings close with little new on the table, say NGOs
5 May 09 -- NGOs expressed dismay after four days of Bank meetings, saying no lasting solutions to the financial and climate crisis have been placed on the table. “The 42nd annual meeting of the Ban...
Bank watchdog calls ADB response to financial crisis a sham
4 May 09 -- The largest Asian NGO
network monitoring the ADB today slammed the bank's response to the financial
crisis, calling it a dangerous plan to unleash massive infrastructure
funding while r...
Bank success in securing capital increase based on PR, says NGOs
3 May 09 -- NGOs and peoples
organizations today disputed ADB claims of aid effectiveness, saying the bank's
has opted for an aggressive external relations drive which has masked the
failure of pro...
Bank watchdog raises alarm on ADB’s general capital increase
2 May 09 -- The ADB watchdog challenged the ADB's move for a general capital increasee (GCI), calling it irresponsible and dangerous. "
If not managed well,
this 200% general capital increase coul...
ADB accused of favoring private sector
1 May 09 -- The Asian Development Bank receives another blow as critics question whether it has caused more harm than good to local communities. In an article published by the Associated Press, Forum ...
Forum Annual Meeting kicks off in Bali
28 Apr 09 -- The NGO Forum on ADB formally opens its annual meeting in Bali, Indonesia. With the current global issues, the FAM began with discussions of big picture issues such as the financial crisi...
ADB's Not-So-Capital Idea
29 April 09 -- The Asian Development Bank has been once again criticized. This time by the Wall Street Journal. In an editorial, WSJ questions the Bank's claim that it intends to help Asia reach the U...
Free from debt, free from poverty
27 Apr 09 -- Indonesian activists spread banners and posters in front of the Asian Development Bank's headquarters in Jakarta, 27 April 2009. Local civil society organizations have been criticizing th...
Indo NGOs urge govt to be cautious of ADB loans
16 Apr 09 -- Pushing their government to be more selective and careful in using ADB
loans, Indonesian activists believe that doing so will prevent the
emergence of unnecessary debt related, social a...
Indo NGOs to protest at ADB's Annual Meeting
15 Apr 09 -- Around 1,000 people are planning to stage a big rally during the 42nd
Annual Meeting of the ADB in Bali, Indonesia to protest the Bank's
failure in helping the poor and developing Asian...
ADB’s project lacks Public Participation in Mongolia
10 Apr 09 -- Just a few kilometres from Ulaanbaatar, an old man is waiting for last
four years to construct a concrete house. Despite his ability and
capacity to build pucca (concrete) house, he cou...
Mae Moh villagers triumph over case against EGAT
3 Apr 09 -- Local villagers who contracted respiratory diseases due to the Mae Moh Coal Power Plant win over the case they filed against the Electricity Authority of Thailand. The controversial power ...
ADB criticized for anti-poor policies
19 Mar 09 -- Bangladeshi civil society organizations bashed ADB's Strategy 2020 for its anti-poor stand demanded strong resistance against ADB’s policies that are biased toward private sector-led de...
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The ADB and climate fund
12 Mar 09 -- The amount of money spent by ADB on climate change is by far not
enough. But, the expenditures must be judged on their merits as well:
to what extent the money spent indeed results in l...
Donors worry about Safeguards and Energy review, questions ADB's capital increase plan
25 Feb 09 -- The Asian Development Bank's plan of increasing its capital base in time for its annual general meeting in May becomes bleak as some members of the Bank's board expressed concern about th...
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The Asian Development Bank shields offenders from bad publicity
The Wall Street Journal comments on ADB's solicitation for additional capital from its member countries, saying: "The surest way for th...
ADB's lending revamp under threat
24 Feb 09 -- The Asian Development Bank's plan of increasing its general capital is in danger because of mounting concern in Washington over the Bank's recent controversial move, watering down its soc...
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ADB under pressure on policy as it seeks funds
5 Feb 09 -- International wire service, Reuters, takes on the Asian Development Bank as it
receives another blow from one of its board members saying, "ADB's environmental
and social safeguards mu...
Bank watchdog slams fraudulent ADB energy review
4 Feb 09 -- Bank
watchdog NGO Forum on the ADB hit the Asian Development Bank today for
what it called a "sham of a review of the ADB's energy policy". Forum
executive director Red Constantino call...
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ADB energy policy proposal 'misled' govts, stakeholders
ADB watchdog questions ADB’s survival fund
28 Jan 09 -- Asian
Development Bank's plan to setup a survival fund to help its member
countries cope with financial crisis was faced by mixed reactions
according to Manila's leading business newsp...
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Mixed reactions to ADB stimulus plan
ADB’s fractured objective and battered mission
24 Jan 09 -- Around 190 people don’t want to find the meaning of modernization in
their lexicon as they are frightened to lose their only income
generating livelihood. The reason is the Asian Deve...
ADB told to double its effort in strengthening its safeguards
6 Jan 09 -- As
it calls for IFIs to guard against the dilution of their respective
social and environmental guidelines, the World Resources Institute
(WRI) demands the ADB to double its efforts in ...
ADB projects in Philippines rated below Asean average
While the ADB's performance in the Philippines improved in 2008, the
country was rated below 50 percent in terms of success rate of the
Bank's operations in previous years.
Climate fund not to be entrusted to IFIs
15 Dec 08 -- As the COP 14 in Poznan draws to an end, S. Jahangir Masum of Coastal
Development Partnership tackles the danger of entrusting the climate
adaptation fund to IFIs. Citing the KJDRP expe...
ADB pushing Asia's poor towards the cliff, watchdog says
8 Dec 08 -- The NGO Forum launched a scathing report on the ADB's failure in
implementing its current safeguards, resulting in impoverishment in
Asia. "Can the ADB implement its current safeguards p...
Climate change, GHG emissions and creature stories
5 Dec 08 -- Check out the latest news at the COP-14 in Poznan. Interested to learn
more about Climate Change and Clean Development Mechanism? Or would you
like to know who gets hit most and hardest ...
ADB watchdog submits comments to second Safeguards draft
4 Dec 08 -- Calling it a dilution of the existing Safeguard Policies of the ADB,
the NGO Forum on ADB sent its official submission to the ADB Safeguards
team. The ADB watchdog believes that the seco...
ADB Safeguards consultations end with massive proposals for major revisions
21 Nov 08 -- The ADB's three-day consultation on its Safeguards draft ended in a
note of concern and hope, with participants happy over the process but
expressing dismay over
the poor quality of th...
CSOs hit draft safeguards, ADB lawyers say safeguards are diluted
The ADB received strong criticism from CSOs for diluting its existing
safeguards. Forum hit the ADB for directly weakening the Safeguards,
completely contradicting the ongoing efforts of other finan...
ADB private-sector loans only ‘partly OK’
The ADB's Operations Evaluatioin Department takes on the Bank's
private-sector lending, rating it as “partly successful” due to poor
impact and outcomes, low profitability and the lack or absenc...
Reputation on line over bid to update criteria
17 Nov 08 -- The ADB's reputation faces one of its biggest tests as it holds
consultations with civil society groups from around the world on a
draft plan for updating its social and environmental l...
ADB probe criticises its own investments
17 Nov 08 -- The ADB’s private equity fund investments have produced
“unsatisfactory” returns, selection has lacked focus while
environmental and other safeguards have been weak, according to ...
Local NGOs question ADB's Cambodian food aid Local NGOs question ADB's Cambodian food aid program
8 Nov 08 -- "We are deeply concerned whether ADB's emergency food aid program is
another monetary infusion that might go down the drain, similar to its
previous projects," local NGOs said in a state...
The rich are staging a coup this morning
20 Oct 08 -- The biggest robbery in the history of this country is taking place as
you read this. In response to the ongoing global financial crisis, a
transitional program for radical economic tran...
Debt watchdog condemns ADB-WB for promoting climate change
14 Oct 08 -- "We condemn the ADB, World Bank and the IMF in promoting climate change
through debt-driven infrastructure and promotion of dirty industries,"
said the Freedom from Debt Coalition in a ...
NGOs blast ADB for calling coal project clean
13 Oct 08 -- Listing the Tata funding as a clean energy project is ridiculous, said
Mishka Zaman of Bank Information Center and Karen Orenstein of Friends
of the Earth. Activists strongly objected t...
Power Surge: The impacts of rapid dam developments in Laos
10 Oct 08 -- "The project told us, if someone asks, even if you don’t have your
compensation money, say you do,” a villager from the ADB-funded Nam
Theun II project area said. In spite of its pl...
Imperatives amid uncertainty
29 Sep 08 -- There is quiet fear. There is paralyzing despair. Increasing global
temperatures have been changing the face of life as we know it. And as
the biggest emitters in the North and the Sou...
ADB slammed for compromising independence of its watchdog unit
26 Sep 08 -- "The Bank is not following best practice and the independence of the
director-general of the OED is not, in fact, completely assured,"
European governments said in a joint statement. Th...
Fast track power generation
25 Sep 08 -- The call for the construction of the 4,500-MW Diamer-Bhasha Dam on the
Indus in Northern Pakistan could solve the ongoing blackouts in cities
and could respond to the growing demand by ...
CSOs demand ADB to stop its hypocrisy
24 Sep 08 -- "The Asian Development Bank should consider reviewing its future
invesments in the energy and transport sectors if it wants to avoid its
hypocrisy on climate change," Avilash Roul of NG...
Forward or backwards?
11 Sep 08 -- New information acquired by the Forum shows apparent progress on an
energy issue long pushed by CSOs. First scan shows ADB surpassing its
annual $1 billion clean energy target, but with...
ADB’s effectiveness questioned as Ghana Forum opens
2 Sep 08 -- "ADB loans do result in reducing and reproducing poverty at the same
time," Isagani Serrano of the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement
said. The beneficial impact of the ADB's opera...
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The continuing practice by the ADB and other multilateral banks of
imposing policy conditions on aid to developing countries have deprived
them of their rights and have even worsened poverty in the ...
Lafarge Surma Cement in South Asia: Violator of ADB Safeguards
29 Aug 08 -- “Natural resources needed by tribal people for their survival will soon
be completely lost if the limestone mining operation by the Lafarge
Umium Pvt. Ltd is allowed by authorities to...
ADB funds used to prop Pakistan dictator
21 Aug 08 -- “Civil
society is strongly concerned that the ADB has been supporting
dictators and dictatorship in Pakistan by increasing its lending and
funding during the dictatorial regime in Pa...
CSOs to establish monitoring council for ADB water project
15 Aug 08 -- "We need to establish a public council to monitor the proper
expenditure of this money for the people," Anara Dautalieva said
referring to the US$4-million grant allocated by the ADB to...
Dubious water management rehabilitation in rural Tajikistan
12 Aug 08 -- "All money dedicated for the project and for our village went to
somebody’s pocket,” said Tadjibay, a 70-year old man from Dastibed
village in Tajikistan. The ADB-funded irrigation ...
ADB to release energy strat this quarter?
11 Aug 08 -- More than a year after its energy policy consultations, the ADB is now
eyeing a third quarter release of the new Energy Strategy. This is
according to a member of the Bank’s energy te...
A Labor Perspective on ADB’s Core Labor Standards in Tajikistan
27 Jul 08 -- A Tajik laborer of the ADB-funded Dushanbe-Kyrgyz Road Rehabilitation
Project (Phase-1) recounts how they have been treated. "The payment is
very low, not enough to take care of my fami...
Controversy mars another ADB-funded project
24 Jul 08 -- Employees of the ADB-funded Sindh Rural Development Project claimed
that they have not been paid for the past 10 months. Most of the
project funds were used in purchasing costly vehicle...
ADB heeds watchdog’s call
18 Jul 08 -- The ADB has recently responded to NGO Forum's call for better
Safeguards Consultation. "ADB continues to be committed to a
broad-based, transparent and inclusive consultation process fo...
ADB criticized for unfair consulting methods
18 Jul 08 -- "How many times have we been consulted... by ADB consultants, and we
tell them everything we know, and then in the end, we don't hear back
from them," Alisi Daurewa of Partners in Commu...
Water Forum calls for region-wide task force to tackle urgent water issues
16 Jul 08 -- NGOs from Central Asia and the Caucasus, together with some government
officials, formed a region-wide task force to tackle the transboundary
water problems and hydropower issues facing...
Former NGO Forum head comments on G8's position on climate change
15 Jul 08 -- Private corporations involved in fossil fuel projects in G8 countries
benefit from almost every project finance package. "The ADB, of which
Japan and the United States are the biggest s...
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Civil society groups criticized the G8 for its position on climate
change saying, “the agreement among the G8 to reduce global greenhouse
emissions by 50 percent by 2050 is a step back from the mi...
Regional Water Forum opens in Central Asia and the Caucasus
14 Jul 08 -- Amidst continuing debate surrounding water resources management in the
region, the IFI Monitoring Working Group in Central Asia and the
Caucasus formally opened the two-day regional wat...
NGOs demand better Safeguards Consultation from ADB
7 Jul 08 --- The NGO Forum on the ADB has demanded for a meaningful second round of
Safeguards consultation from the ADB. In an official letter, the ADB
watchdog reminded the Bank that there was dis...
One Bumpy Highway Ride
4 Jul 08 -- "I was totally disagreeing with the compensation offered by the
government and ADB," said Ek Vendara, one of the affected people by the
ADB-funded Highway One project in Cambodia. Avilas...
ADB fails in carbon footprint test
24 Jun 08 -- The ADB's footprint is much larger than it professes, said NGO Forum
strategic research coordinator Abby Don in a recent study. "While the
focus is more on high-profile, widely known cu...
Related Story:
Contrary to its recent pronouncements that it “practices what it
preaches with respect to energy efficiency and resource conservation,”
Forum's study on the ADB's transport sector reveals its li...
CSOs hit ADB communication policy on Bishkek Heating Plant
19 Jun 08 -- One of the largest civil society networks in Central Asia and the
Caucasus region questioned today the relevance of the touted public
communication policy of the Asian Development Bank ...
ADB's LTSF criticized for its anti-poor stand and corporate bias
19 Jun 08 -- "The ADB is urging corporations to establish its economic and political
hegemony over people's life through its long-term strategy 2020," said
Ahmed Swapan Mahmud. Adding, the LTSF is p...
ADB Jumps to Corporate Welfare
15 Jun 08 -- "I don't see how a profit-oriented private sector will win the war
against poverty," said Annie Geron, a stalwart of the labor network
Public Services International. Better, said Ms. Ge...
ADB abandons Asia's poor, says ex-ADB Social Development manager
15 Jun 08 -- Whom does the ADB really serve? Why is it denying developing country
government access to much-needed funds for social development? What can
the region's poor look forward to with the A...
Coming clean (sort of)
10 Jun 08 -- Leading Philippine business paper takes on ADB's move to drop clean coal.
Keeping the Asian Clean Energy Forum clean
9 Jun 08 -- Asian Clean Energy Forum (ACEF) 2008 will be remembered as the
event where the ADB finally decided to drop the term 'clean coal'.
Unfortunately, it has little else to show.
Related Story:
Leading Philippine business paper takes on ADB's move to drop clean coal.
Of lights and lanterns
20 May 08 -- Lanterns, wind and people. A profiteering bank called the ADB. A poem,
signs and sangria. Do we have your attention now? Come inside and read
the stories. And tell us yours. Go to our n...
ADB warned of Asia’s risks without strong Safeguards
6 May 08 -- Asia’s vulnerable communities and environment will
continue to be at risk if the Asian Development Bank fails to improve
its existing Safeguards that are currently being revised.
ADB’s 'climate change hypocrisy' denounced by civil society groups
5 May 08 -- Asian environmental and human rights groups branded
today the Asian Development Bank as a "leading world emitter of climate
change hypocrisy" for issuing calls for clean energy investmen...
NGOs to ADB president: "No future for Asia's poor under ADB!"
3 May 08 -- Asian Development Bank President Haruhiko Kuroda
opened the 41st Annual Meeting of the ADB today under a hail of
questions from civil society groups critical of the ADB's pursuit of
pri...
Forum calls for stronger policies safeguarding social rights and the environment
29 April 08 -- NGO Forum on ADB has submitted to the ADB its
comments on the Draft Safeguards Policy Statement calling for a
stronger set of policies safeguarding the local communities and the
envi...
ADB's 2020 Strategy confirms corporate bias
10 April 08 -- Civil society groups criticized the new
strategic framework of the Asian Development Bank, saying it is moving
towards private sector-led development, which is anti-poor and
vulnerab...
ADB agrees to investigate the Taza Su water project in Kyrgyzstan
7 April 08 -- The Asian Development Bank agreed
to investigate the Taza-Su Water Project in Kyrgyzstan. This was in
response to complaints filed by Anara Dautalieva, head of NGO
“Taza-Tabigat” ...
NGOs Comment on ADF X Replenishment, Call for Stronger Safeguards
11 Mar 08 -- Members of NGO Forum have submitted their
comments on the Asian Development Fund (ADF) X replenishment to the
Board of Directors of the ADB. They called for more stringent set of
envir...
NGOs Pull Out of ADB's Mekong Safeguards Consultations
5 Mar 08 -- Groups from Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand,
and Burma have refused to attend the Asian Development Bank's safeguard
policy update consultations held this week in Hanoi, citing weakness of
...
NGOs Cease Talks with ADB on Crucial Environmental and Social Issues
8 Feb 08 -- Non-governmental organizations from different
parts of the world have halted their on-going consultative talks with
the Asian Development Bank (ADB) over the latter’s egregiously prepa...
Phulbari Coal Project to Violate Safeguard Policies, ADB Told
20 Dec 07 -- Local communities have strongly protested over ADB's support on the
proposed Phulbari Coal Project. In a letter signed by local community
members, they urge the regional bank to remove ...
Civil Society Slams 2007 Global Accountability Report
7 Dec 07 -- NGO Forum on ADB has lambasted the recent
2007 Global Accountability Report that highly rates the institutional
accountability and transparency of the Asian Development Bank, saying
it ...
ADB Responds to Forum's Call
6 Nov 07 -- The ADB has responded to Forum's call for
genuine safeguards consultation. On a letter sent to NGO Forum, the
regional bank has said that it is willing to reschedule the following
Safeg...
Northeast Cambodians Abandon Riverside Homes for Safer, Higher Ground
15 Oct 07 --
More than 3,500 dam-affected people in northeastern Cambodia have abandoned
their riverside villages and moved upland, according to research conducted
by 17 communitybas...
PSIRU Releases Briefers on ADB-Funded Power Projects in South Asian Region
15 Oct 07 -- The
Public Services International Research Unit has recently released briefers
on ADB-funded power projects in South Asia. The briefers specifically cover
power projects...
No to Aid for Unfair Trade
19
Sep 07 -- Amidst the strong rain, debt and trade activists
staged a rally in front of the Asian Development Bank's headquarters in
Manila to protest against the proposed Aid for T...
The Wrath of the Gods: Dream Road Turned into a Disaster!
22 Jun 07 --
Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ) Sri Lanka claims that the ADB, Japan
Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), and/or the Sri Lankan goverment
were unable to imp...
ADB putting profit before people
20 June 07 --The
People's Forum on ADB in Kyoto recently uploaded the materials distributed
during the worksop entitled, "Water Privatization & Struggles in Asia - In
Search of A...
ADB will continue to fund climate change
1 Jun 07 -- “The
Asian Development Bank will continue to fund climate change. The Bank will
still invest in coal power plants inspite its recognition that coal projects
have seriou...
ADB's Draft Energy Strategy now available for comments
29 May 07 -- The ADB
has recently released its draft energy strategy. Commenting period begins on 28 May 2007 to 27 July 2007.
ADB Asked to Commit to Respect Indigenous Peoples' Fundamental Rights
24 May 07 -- The
Asia Caucus and the Forest Peoples Programme calls for the recognition of the
indigenous peoples' fundamental rights by the Asian Development Bank in its
development...
ADB Washes Its Hands Off Melamchi Project
22 May 07 -- Asian Development Bank today finally said it would not be
possible to carry on with the project activities of US$500-million Melamchi
Water Supply Project (MWSP) because the g...
CSOs Opposes ADB Co-Funded PPIAF
15 May 07 -- Civil society
organizations all over the world urge donors to oppose the extension of the
Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility (PPIAF). Since the release
of t...
CSOs tell ADB: Honor Your Anti-Poverty Promise
7 May 07 --
“We do not want another 40 years of debt, poverty and ecological plunder,”
according to civil society groups and affected peoples on the last day of
the ADB’s Annua...
ADB Should Not Fund Phulbari Coal Project
1 May 07-- Japan Center for a Sustainable Environment and Society (JACSES) said that ADB should not fund Phulbari Coal Project. In its position paper, JACSES pointed out that the project would displac...
ADB: Save the Climate! Quit Coal Now!
18 April 07 --
Greenpeace activists held a demonstration in front of the ADB headquarters
calling for the Bank to quit coal and save the climate. With a four-meter
replica of a coal ...
Stop Funding Climate Change! - ADB Told
8 Dec 06 -- Greenpeace
activists, together with other non-governmental organizations, raised a
balloon "Stop Funding Climate Change" in front of the ADB headquarters in
Manila. The A...
Poor Technical Quality of EIAs: OED Releases Result of Evaluation Study on the Safeguard Policy
26 Sep 06 --
"The quality of environmental assessments was found to be inconsistent and
often did not reflect current international good practice," the report
stated.
Related Story:
Special Evaluation Study on Involuntary Resettlement Safeguards
Joint Letter to ADB President on SPF Selection Process
6 Sep 06 -- We are
writing to express our concerns regarding the selection process for members
of the ADB’s Accountability Mechanism, particularly the current opening for
the Speci...
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