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ADB reviews policies in India
Friday, 17 December 2004, 20:30 IST
NEW DELHI: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has concluded its consultations with government officials and NGOs to review the execution of its governance and anticorruption policies in India.
The focus group discussions were also held with donors and staff members from the resident mission Thursday, a press release issued by the Manila-based multilateral funding agency said.
"ADB is in the midst of significant reforms," said Jak Jabes, director of ADB's Governance and Regional Cooperation Division in the Philippines.
"This consultation helps us to get stakeholder input for governance and anticorruption - two key areas of our reform agenda," Jabes added.
"ADB's projects in India promote the elements of good governance - one of which is ensuring stakeholder participation in projects from preparation to monitoring of implementation," said Alex Jorgensen, specialist at ADB's mission in India.
"Our investments in infrastructure and basic services are demand-driven and we recommend policy reforms to make capital investments sustainable."
According to Asha Newsum, another specialist on governance, the two ADB policies make an explicit link between governance and institutions.
"The governance policy describes governance as the institutional environment in which citizens interact among themselves and with government agencies and officials," she says.
"The anticorruption policy is a key component of ADB's governance framework stressing the importance of in-depth dialogue with developing member countries on governance and corruption issues and of maintaining high ethical standards for its projects and staff."
ADB, established in 1966 and owned by 66 members, wants to reduce poverty in the Asia and Pacific region through pro-poor sustainable economic growth, social development and good governance.
The review is looking at the extent to which the implementation of the policies has improved the institutional environment in member countries, specifically on how effectively the policies are being made operational in India, ADB said.
The review also aims to identify priority actions for ADB to increase its operational effectiveness as it works towards an Asia and Pacific region free from poverty.
Source: IANS
Source: IANS