ADB to improve collaboration with World Bank

MANILA, Philippines — Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) said it will improve its collaboration with the World Bank in the Philippines and other countries in Asia Pacific.

This is in response to the call made by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III for greater coordination among multilateral banks to tackle projects efficiently.

“ADB is responding to Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III’s call for us to become more efficient, responsive and better coordinated with the World Bank and other multilateral development banks to meet the changing needs of our client countries,” said ADB president Takehiko Nakao.

“In the Philippines, ADB is already collaborating with the World Bank on the implementation of the government’s conditional cash transfer program and the rehabilitation and recovery efforts in Marawi, among others. We can do better, and will take concrete steps to further improve the process,” he added.

He said ADB and the World Bank are now exploring joint initiatives to reduce transaction costs for developing member countries.

The two institutions are also exchanging views on how to work more closely in areas such as programming support, procurement, project implementation review and social and environmental safeguards.

Nakao and Dominguez have been discussing the need for a closer collaboration among multilateral institutions since 2017.

Last May, ADB hosted a meeting with the Department of Finance and the World Bank and discussed ways to strengthen collaboration in support of government priorities.

Immediate focus areas include tourism development, ocean pollution, disaster risk management, post-conflict resolution and improving local governments’ ability to deliver public services.

ADB projects in the Philippines are expanding in line with the Build Build Build initiative and other development priorities of the government. Accordingly, annual lending is increasing, from below $1 billion in 2011 to 2017 to $1.4 billion in 2018 and $2.5 billon in 2019 up to 2021.

Regarding its collaboration with the World Bank beyond the Philippines, ADB noted that there have already been long-running efforts and concrete progress, especially in the Pacific.

The two institutions are co-financing a range of investment projects under a common procurement arrangement, which alleviates the administrative burden in small island countries.

ADB and the World Bank last year signed the Procurement Framework Agreement, which allowed the lead co-financier’s procurement procedures to be used for co-financed projects in Asia and the Pacific.