Objectives
It proposes Strategic Development Objectives by adopting Poverty Reduction, carrying out activities to promote economic growth, develop human resources, improve the status of women, and protect the environment. Its other key development objectives, such as law and policy reform, regional cooperation, private-sector development, and social development, also contribute significantly to this main goal.
Budget
Operations in ADB are financed by issuing bonds, recycling repayments and receiving contributions from member countries. The total assets of ADB in 2000 were around $43.8 billion.
Promotion in the Water Sector
ADB has been actively involved in the water sector and financed projects for irrigation, drainage, flood control, water supply and sanitation, hydropower, fisheries, forestry and watershed management, navigation, or multiple uses. Since its establishment in 1966, over $15 billion, or about 19 percent of its total lending, has been invested in water sector projects. Of this, hydropower ($2.8 billion), irrigation and drainage ($5 billion), water supply and sanitation ($4 billion), watershed management ($636 million), and flood control ($523 million) have been the principal areas of attention. Technical assistance worth $280 million has been provided to prepare projects, research sector issues, formulate sector solutions, and build institutional capacities. ADB's assistance has been provided mainly in the context of evolving country and sector strategies.
ADB attempts to move from an era of disaggregated water sector investments aimed primarily at creating assets to an era of holistic, integrated investments to promote efficient water use. The objectives of ADB are:
- To support the development of an effective legislative framework and to provide a mechanism for dispute resolution.
- To promote efficiencies in water use by supporting demand management, including water pricing.
- To target the poor's equitable access to water, the empowerment of communities in the process of water management.
It attempts to include different stakeholders from different sectors, such as NGOs, representatives of user groups, the private sector, academia and government agencies in water management and development. The ADB seems to emphasise its role as financial supporter to facilitate multi-stake holder participation in water related development projects with the strategy of poverty reduction. However, the ADB's energetic drive towards multi stakeholder participation seems to be offset and in question by the fact that a large percentage of the poor people in Asia still face major difficulties in getting access to safe water.
ADB website