THE ASIAN Development Bank (ADB) and Japan have established a new trust fund to develop advanced low-carbon technologies in developing Asian countries.
Jun 262014
Apr 242014
THE ASIAN Development Bank (ADB) announced yesterday that it is realigning operations to focus on poverty reduction, inclusive growth, and strengthening support for middle-income countries and the private sector.
Apr 042014
MANILA, Philippines – Large and foreign banks in the country would rather pay fines than comply with the law mandating them to lend to small businesses. According to the inaugural edition of the Asian Development Bank’s Asia Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Finance Monitor, Philippine MSMEs continue to have poor access to credit, “which limits the ability of SMEs to survive and grow.” “According to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas some large banks, particularly international banks, opted to pay a fine rather than set aside funds for lending to risky borrowers such as MSEs (micro and small enterprises),” the report said. The BSP imposes a P500,000 a year fine for zero compliance, while the penalty fees for undercompliance; 90 percent of the penalties collected will be remitted to the MSME Development Council Fund, while the remaining 10 percent is retained by the BSP for administrative expenses. Citing data from the Philippine government, the ADB said MSMEs in the country, make up 99.6 percent (816,759) of the total enterprises in the country in 2011. These MSMEs employed some 3.872 million, representing 61 percent of the total employment in the country. The ADB said that while the Magna Carta for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises as amended by Republic Act (RA) 9501 mandates banks to allocate at least eight percent of their loan portfolio to MSEs and at least two percent to medium-sized enterprises, banks generally fail to comply with this requirement. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “In particular, Read More …
Mar 232014
MANILA, Philippines – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has named Richard Bolt as the new country director for the Philippines, replacing Neeraj Jain. Jain will remain as senior advisor to James A. Nugent, director general of the Southeast Asia Regional Department (SERD) that supervises the Philippine country office. Bolt, who hails from Canada, has been advisor with the SERD since 2009. The incoming country director was advisor for Knowledge and Results Management of SERD and ADB Economics and Research Department in 2000, supporting the economic analysis of project- and policy-based operations, methods development and training. He then moved to operations, covering sector analysis and investment projects in a range of Central and East Asian countries. Bolt also joined the ADB’s Independent Evaluation Department where he was involved with evaluations of policy-based lending, ADB’s long-term strategic framework, and country and sector evaluations. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 He worked with research and development projects supported by bilateral and multilateral agencies, with in-country regional coverage in East and Southern Africa, South East and East Asia and the Pacific. His experience and expertise range from policy and sector analysis, to project management and implementation, and monitoring and evaluation.
Dec 262013
THE ASIAN Development Bank (ADB) has increased its funding for development projects in the Asia-Pacific by a tenth in 2011-2012 as it recognized the continuing problems of poverty and climate change in the region.
Dec 132013
MANILA, Philippines – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is looking at increasing its loan assistance to the Philippines from $500 million to $850 million for the reconstruction of areas affected by typhoon Yolanda. “We are considering to give additional $350 million by the end of the year,” ADB President Tahehiko Nakao said on Friday. The multilateral financial institution has earlier given the Philippines a $23-million grant after the typhoon, $3 million of which were given on Nov. 14. Nakao said the amount, used for the immediate needs of victims, came from the Asia Pacific Disaster Response Fund. The remaining $20 million will come the Japanese government’s Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction. Despite the devastation caused by the strongest typhoon to hit earth this year, the ADB president said it will maintain its 7-percent growth forecast for the Philippines in 2013 and 6.1 percent next year. “It will be offset by the very strong domestic demand in the country on the whole… there’s several quarters the growth that is higher than expected,” he said. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan earlier said regions of Eastern Samar, Panay and Central Visayas which were damaged by the typhoon contribute as much as 12 percent to the country’s overall economic growth. He said the typhoon may negatively affect the fourth quarter economic growth between .3 and .8 percent.
Nov 232013
A Philippine Air Force helicopter is loaded with water at Tacloban airport, ahead of being deployed to a mountainous area inaccessible for vehicles to the west of Tacloban city, in the central Philippines November 17, 2013. The Philippine and U.S. Air Forces are flying rice, clothes and drinking water into remote areas of the central Philippines, which are unreachable by vehicles. A massive relief effort is finally kicking into gear, nine days after one of the most powerful typhoons on record wreaked havoc across the impoverished area in the central Philippines with monster winds and a deadly storm surge of sea water. Philippine authorities and international aid agencies face a mounting humanitarian crisis, with the number of people displaced by the catastrophe estimated at 4 million, up from 900,000 late last week (MNS photo) MANILA (Mabuhay) – While foreign governments have pledged millions of dollars in donations for relief efforts in the Philippines, the government is not actually getting its hands on most of the funds. Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) chief Kim Henares clarified that foreign governments usually course their donations through their own aid organizations. “May misconception ang tao na ang laki-laki ng dinonate ng ibang bansa sa Pilipinas. Ang nangyayari ho, ang America mayroon sila donation eh hindi ho nila binibigay ang pera sa gobyerno. Ginagawa nila binibigay nila sa sariling charitable organization nila, like USAID. At yun USAID mismo ang magdistribute (ng relief goods),” Henares told dzMM. For instance, the US government provided $22.5 million worth Read More …
Oct 062013
THE ASIAN Development Bank (ADB) is looking to increase its technical assistance to the Philippine government for a project to possibly establish an earthquake insurance pool in the country.
Sep 142013
MANILA, Philippines – Top telecom firms Smart Communications and Globe Telecom, Jollibee Foods Corp. and Nestlé Philippines were among the corporations cited in an Asian Development Bank (ADB) report focused on inclusive business (IB). The ADB report defines IB as a commercially viable and profit-making private company whose core business is designed to address pressing social needs of the poor and vulnerable people below the $3 international poverty line, sometimes referred to as the base of the income pyramid. However, the report made it clear that IB is entirely different from corporate social responsibility (CSR), social enterprise or microfinance. “Companies adopt IB primarily to create shared value, increase sales, enhance company reputation and develop the ability to maintain a stable of supply of inputs,” the report, which was co-sponsored by the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) and the Asian Social Enterprises Incubator (ASEI), said. IBs are still concentrated in a few sectors, such as the agricultural sector (24 percent) followed by the financial services sector (14 percent) and the manufacturing sector (10 percent). IB companies in others sectors (IT, energy, education, health, and transport and logistics) are fewer but exhibit profitable IB models. Smart and Globe were cited for bringing mobile communications to the lower segment of society through their prepaid e-loading network. Both telcos also started microfinance mobile banking operations. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 In the food and beverage sector, Jollibee was cited for starting its Farmer Enterpreneurship Program, and subsequently expanding its Read More …
Aug 252013
MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Energy (DOE) will use part of its P4.05 billion budget to finance the department’s continuing activities including the household and sitio electrification program, Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla said. Petilla earlier said the Aquino administration is aiming to cover 33,000 sitios under the rural electrification program by 2015. Aside from household and sitio electrification, the DOE will allocate portion of the budget for “biofuels blending, renewable energy installation and development of indigenous resources and clean energy technologies,” Petilla said. The Energy chief also said that the department has three ongoing special projects – the high impact solar project, which entails promoting the use of solar energy in the Philippines, the high impact hydro project, which is a joint venture with the Philippine National Oil Company-Renewables Corp., electric cooperatives and the private sector and the electric vehicles (e-trike) project, which is under a loan agreement between the government and the Asian Development Bank. For the e-trike project, the ADB is working with the government to promote the adoption of e-trikes in Metro Manila and soon, throughout the country. Ultimately, ADB and the government hope to see 100,000 electric tricycles on the road by 2016. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 The e-trike produces no noise and zero tailpipe emissions and can be charged at night during off-peak electricity hours, according to the ADB.