Delegates began arriving at the National Convention Center in the Vietnamese capital Sunday to register for the Asian Development Bank’s 44th Annual Meeting of its Board of Governors, ADB said on the same day.
The meeting, which formally starts 3 May and runs through 6 May, marks the first time ADB is holding its annual gathering in Vietnam.
Nearly 4,000 delegates, including top policymakers, business leaders, media, academics, and civil society and development institution representatives, are set to attend the meeting, said ADB.
High-level officials from Asia and the Pacific will join other delegates to discuss means of addressing rising concerns over food and energy prices, climate change, and the best strategies for ADB to work with the public and private sectors to reduce poverty and ensure long-term economic growth in Asia and the Pacific, according to the bank.
ADB said it would at this year’s meeting present initial findings of its upcoming report, Asia 2050 – Realizing the Asian Century, which looks at the demographic, social, environmental, and economic challenges ahead and what the region must do to secure a prosperous future 40 years from now.
ADB is also holding, with the G20, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the Japanese Ministry of Finance, a key discussion about the reform of the international monetary system given Asia’s increasing economic and financial clout.
The Board of Governors is ADB’s highest policy-making body and the annual meetings are statutory occasions at which Governors can provide guidance on ADB’s administrative, financial, and operational priorities.
Vietnam was a founding member of the ADB in 1966. Since then, ADB has provided the Southeast Asian nation with 114 sovereign loans totaling US$9.09 billion, one sovereign guarantee of $325 million, 255 technical assistance grant projects amounting to $199.5 million, and 26 other grants totaling $150.1 million, the bank said.
The lender added it has also approved eight non-sovereign loans, two political risk guarantees, and one B-loan totaling $280 million. Vietnam is involved in a number of regional technical assistance and investment projects for the Greater Mekong Subregion, which includes China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand.
