Asian Development Bank (ADB): In this post, we will discuss about the Asian Development Bank (ADB). When was ADB established, the purpose of ADB and various other facts related to ADB.
Asian Development Bank (ADB)
Asian Development Bank is a regional bank established in 1966 to promote social and economic development in Asia.
Purpose: ADB aims to eradicate extreme poverty in Asia and the Pacific. It assists its members and partners by providing loans, technical assistance, grants, and equity investments to promote social and economic development.
Formed: 19 December 1966
Headquarters of ADB: Manila, Philippines
Members: Presently there are 68 members of ADB (49 are from within Asia and the Pacific and 19 outside.). When ADB was formed in 1966, there were 32 members.
Board of Governors of ADB
Board of Governors is the highest decision-making body of the ADB. It has one representative from each member country. Shri Arun Jaitley is the member from India.
Board of Governors elects a 12 member Board of Directors and a chairperson of Board of Directors, who is also the President of Asian Development Bank (ADB).
President of ADB: Masatsugu Asakawa (Japan)
Asian Development Fund
Asian Development Fund (ADF) was established in 1974 to provide loans on concessional terms to ADB’s lower-income developing member countries (DMCs).
Grants were introduced in 2005.
The main difference between a grant and a loan is that loans are to be repayed while grants are not. Grants are, essentially, a gift. In other words, they’re non-repayable.
How is ADF funded
Funds are added to ADF by its members on a rotational basis. For example, for one duration some members will contribute and next time another member will contribute.
ADF resources have been replenished eleven times, the latest being ADF 12 for the period 2017–2020.