In the seven years that Guangzhou native Grace Hexiaoya has called Spain her home, she has mastered the language, become enamoured with the weather and developed a soft spot for all the friendly people that she has met. She likes it in Madrid, where she works behind the counter at the I Love Dulces corner shop and confectionery store. Hers is one of the many Asian faces that can be seen running the Spanish capital’s vital food shops, even as the country – one of Europe’s hardest-hit by the…

As the coronavirus death toll surpasses 250,000 and the world scrambles to find a vaccine, a new scientific task force is headed to the wilderness to try and stop the next pandemic.After decades of patchy global investment into researching the linkages between animal and human health, more than 40 scientists will embark on an Australian government-funded programme that will teach veterinary surgeons in Southeast Asia and the Pacific how to detect infectious diseases – before they make the leap…

Southeast Asian nations already straining from the United States-China tug of war for regional influence are likely to avoid supporting Washington’s drive for Taiwan to be granted observer status for a top-level meeting of the World Health Organisation, analysts have said.Even though the leaders of these countries understand the “moral and logical” arguments for allowing Taiwanese delegates to attend the annual meeting on May 18 – which will be live-streamed because of the coronavirus pandemic …

Hong Kong doctors have performed Asia’s first heart transplant using a new technology invented in the United States that keeps the organ warm, beating and supplied with blood during the transfer, in a medical breakthrough that will enable more life-saving operations across borders.Dr Timmy Au Wing-kuk – chief of Queen Mary Hospital’s cardiothoracic surgery department, which carried out the medical procedure – hailed the Organ Care System as a success story that could not only allow up to five…

Central Asia is improving food safety measures to share with the world some of the more than 8000 plant species, as well as livestock, from the region.

Collecting sex-disaggregated data on asset ownership is an important step in achieving gender equality and empowerment of women and girls in Asia and the Pacific.

Skills training, civic engagement and youth forums will help young people become active players in society’s shared efforts to grow and improve.

Members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are working together to encourage the free flow of skilled labor within their countries. 

Here’s why the perception that skilled migration damages the source country is wrong.

The global value chains that help drive Asia’s export-driven economic miracle have widespread development impacts. We need to understand them better to maximize the benefits.

Making it easier for workers to move between countries is key to liberalizing the trade in services and unleashing the benefits it will produce across national and regional economies.

Climate-smart and resource-saving farming technologies could be one way to address hunger in Asia.

Infrastructure has a critical role in narrowing gender gaps and accelerating the advancement of women and girls. If women are given a say in infrastructure design and investment, projects can become more effective enablers of their growth.

The Asia and Pacific region is aging rapidly, and that is affecting the region’s workforce, but increased longevity is adding an unexpected element to the picture

Southeast Asian economies are starting to feel the pinch of trade tensions, recession fears and other global trends.

The poor and middle class are struggling to find affordable housing across the region, but there are some basic steps cities can take to improve the situation.

Work done within the home, including caring for children, is extremely important to society but undervalued and poorly tracked. 

With no single cause, and no magic solution, the congestion of Asia’s cities requires government resolve and know-how to fix.

Past financial crises have demonstrated how adequate financial safety net arrangements—globally, regionally, and nationally—are vital to safeguarding financial stability.

The ‘app economy’ provides potential risks and benefits for developing countries. The right policies are needed to bring out the best in these emerging economic trends.

Despite variations across countries on policy mix and timing, a pragmatic focus on sustained growth, poverty reduction, and inclusiveness characterize Asia’s economic rise 

Asia and the Pacific is not where it needs to be to meet the Sustainable Development Goals but there remains a decade to make up for lost time.

Asian cities act as engines of economic growth, providing jobs, expertise, and the sharing of resources. But in some cases, these powerful engines are sputtering due to insufficient infrastructure, inadequate planning, and poor governance.

Solar power is helping Asia get electricity to people, particularly in rural and remote areas, but it has fallen behind in its use as a clean energy cooking source.

Girls and women today have far more opportunities and role models than their mothers and grandmothers, but there is much more to be done.

A high level of external debt is linked with decreased economic growth but there are policy options that can help economies keep growing.

Asia’s economies have generally maintained sound macroeconomic policies that can help the region withstand this latest challenge and emerge even stronger.

The Asia Pacific region is standing together to cooperate regionally to address the transnational threat posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bank-held nonperforming loans in some Asian economies have risen in recent years. Policy makers should address this growing risk now.

The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the need to strengthen programs and policies affecting older persons both in times of crisis and afterward.

The pandemic provides an opportunity for regional financial cooperation on reforms to make Asian banks more resilient to crises.

The Asia-Pacific region has the expertise and resources to take a leadership role in not only developing a COVID-19 vaccine but distributing it to those who need it most.

Bold action is required by policymakers and central bankers to keep the region’s economies afloat and contain the pandemic.

Countries can minimize the economic risk of epidemics by investing in the tools needed to predict disease emergence.

A forward-looking, regional approach is needed for countries in Central Asia to respond to the pandemic and prepare for future public health threats.

To reduce air pollution, national and city government policy makers, their development partners, academe, and the private sector need to work with young people. 

Islamabad : Iran, China, India, Pakistan, Indonesia and the Philippines have the most cases of COVID-19 and related deaths in the Asia Pacific region.The COVID-19 situation of Asia Pacific was highlighted in the Second COVID-19 Situation Report Asia Pacific released by United Nations Population...

To better understand how ADB’s developing members are weathering the COVID-19 crisis, the Economic Research and Regional Cooperation Department launched the ADB COVID-19 Policy Database.

Grant agreements outline the terms of an agreement for a grant. This document dated 7 May 2020 is provided for the ADB project 54229-001 in Fiji.

ADB Asia Clean Energy Forum (ACEF) 2020 is going virtual and will be held during the week of 15-19 June 2020.

ADB invites papers for the Asian Development Conference 2020 to be held 16-17 July 2020 in Seoul, Korea.

The Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of Governors is an opportunity to provide guidance on ADB administrative, financial, and operational directions. The meetings provide opportunities for member governments to interact with ADB staff, nongovernment organizations (NGOs), media, and representatives of observer countries, international organizations, academe and the private sector. ADB’s annual meetings have become a premier forum for the discussion of economic and social development issues in Asia and the Pacific.

The Roundtable on Financing Water, to be held on 26–28 November 2019 in Manila, Philippines, is jointly organized by OECD and ADB. This is the fifth meeting of the roundtable series and focuses on the Asia and Pacific region.

This report presents nine case studies on poverty reduction projects financed by ADB in Mongolia, Nepal, the People’s Republic of China, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan, and Viet Nam.

As Asia rapidly urbanizes, providing water and sanitation services has become problematic.

This publication features projects promoting gender mainstreaming in the energy, transport, water supply and sanitation, and irrigation subsectors in Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

The COVID-19 outbreak is hurting developing Asia's economies. Growth will slow sharply, and the outlook is very uncertain.

Regional economic growth in developing Asia will decline sharply to 2.2% in 2020 due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, before recovering in 2021, according to the Asian Development Outlook 2020.

A peer to peer discussion on how ADB works with the private sector to fill the investment gaps and finance facilities that generate and distribute clean energy.