The 56th Asian Development Bank Annual Meeting is underway, from 2 -5 May 2023, in Incheon, South Korea. This year NGO Forum on ADB is hosting two-panel sessions -
Challenging Ways Forward: Asserting Communities' Considerations on Just Transition
Discussants from the Philippines, Indonesia, Pakistan and India will raise critical questions about the plans being put in place to spur on the retirement or 'repurposing' of coal power projects, including the need for public accountability, transparency and remedy, pivot away from not only dependence on fossil fuels but also false solutions such as waste-to-energy incineration and mega-dams. Speakers will also provide perspectives on what just, sustainable and rights-based transformations would look like if systematically marginalized sectors were at the helm of decision- and policy-making processes. Senior ADB Management will be on hand to respond.
Speakers include -
Gerry Arances | Center for Energy, Ecology and Development (CEED)
Kabir Arora | (Alliance of Indian Waste Pickers) Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives - Asia Pacific
Tanya Roberts-Davis | NGO Forum on ADB
Andri Prasetiyo | Trend Asia
Fiza Qureshi | Indus Consortium
Lidy Nacpil | Asian Peoples' Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD)
Ahmed Saeed | Vice-President for East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific, Asian Development Bank
Moderated by Rayyan Hassan, NGO Forum on ADB
Approaching the Last Mile Efforts for a Strong Safeguards Policy
By May, ADB is expected to release its draft Environmental and Social Framework for public comments as part of its Safeguard Policy Statement review. This session aims to present CSOs’ perspectives on the proposed changes; their recommendations on strengthening the policy to align with global climate goals and international humanitarian standards; and to provide a venue for ADB’s project–affected communities to raise their concerns related to indigenous peoples’ rights, gender, and labour.
Speakers include -
Titi Soentoro | Aksi! for gender, social and ecological justice
Ritu Thapa | Indigenous Women LegalAwareness Group (INWOLAG)
Dr. Rene Ofreneo | Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC)
Radhika Goyal | Accountability Counsel
Bruce Dunn | Sustainable Development and Climate ChangeDepartment, Safeguards Division,
Asian Development Bank
Chantale Wong | US Executive Director, Asian Development Bank
Moderated by Annabel Perreras | NGO Forum on ADB
Meeting between Civil Society Organizations and ADB Senior Management
The Forum Network will actively participate in the Meeting between Civil Society Organizations and ADB Senior Management, demanding accountability and transparency from ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa and the entire senior management team. We will seize this opportunity to voice our concerns and hold them accountable for their actions. Their welcome message will be met with tough questions from us and like-minded CSO representatives, demanding answers on topics such as ADB's impact on local communities, environmental sustainability, and social justice. We will not hesitate to challenge ADB's support for development that disregards the rights and well-being of marginalized communities. We will advocate for meaningful engagement with civil society and demand concrete actions to address the social and environmental impacts of ADB's projects. The network will not back down until ADB's senior management hears our demands for a just and sustainable development approach.