The Asian Development Bank concluded its 40th annual meeting here on Monday amid sincere voices calling for the region's premiere financial assistance institution to go on with its original mission of poverty alleviation and primary focus of narrowing disparities between the rich and the poor.

During the two-day meeting of its Board of Governors held in the Japanese ancient capital, delegations from some of the developing countries in the region expressed concerns over ADB's possible shift of focus to such fields as energy-savings and sustainable growth, worrying that reduced attention and help from ADB may left them further behind.

"There are still pockets in Asia where poverty is rampant, and people live in primitive environments with no access whatsoever to modern amenities," said Nepal's ADB Governor Ram Sharan Mahat on one of the three business sessions. "To address this daunting challenge of poverty alleviation, the ADB must continue to support the developing member economies with additional concessional resources."

"There will still be a significant number of poor in the region. Our view is that the ADB should continue to focus on poverty alleviation in these low-income economies until this mission is accomplished," Cambodia's ADB Governor Keat Chhon suggested.

The voices were actually aroused by a newly-released report of the Eminent Persons Group, which was commissioned last year by ADB President Haruhiko Kuroda to give advice on the bank's route for future development.

The group of experts recommended the ADB should update with a change of focus from poverty-fighting missions to supporting inclusive and sustainable growth.

"We welcome the report of the Eminent Persons Group, however, the changes suggested in the report concerning the ADB's strategic priorities and business model should be assessed carefully so that the needs of smaller and low-income countries are not left unattended," said Mirza Md. Azizul Islam, ADB governor for Bangladesh.

Nepalese ADB Governor Mahat emphasized that environmental concerns must not be overplayed to the extent of disrupting or increasing the cost of implementing infrastructure projects in least developed countries.

"Some short-run environmental sacrifices are needed to reach out to people living in the most primitive conditions," he added.

Some delegates were questionable about the ADB's optimism on more than fulfilling the targets set in the Millennium Development Goal, arguing that the region remains home to about two thirds of the world's poor.

Their concerns were even echoed by governors from developed member economies.

"Many countries still have high levels of poverty and inequality," said ADB Governor for Norway Anne Stenhammer, who proposed for more reflection on and discussion of panel's report.

In his closing statement, Japanese Finance Minister and Chair of the ADB Board of Governors Koji Omi called on the ADB to listen sincerely to these "valuable opinions" in order to continue to contribute to the development of the Asia-Pacific region.

Deliberation on the controversy was also highlighted in the conclusion speech of the bank's president Haruhiko Kuroda, who admitted that achieving the millennium development goals remains a major challenge for the region and that the ADB should play a central role.

"The debate that has surrounded the Report of the Eminent Persons Group underscores the imperative for the ADB to evolve to meet new challenges while staying focused on poverty reduction," Kuroda said, adding that he has initiated the review of the bank's Long Term Strategic Framework and will define its path to the future through consultations with stakeholders.

Established in 1966, the Manila-based institution now groups 67 members, 48 within the region. Its vision has been "a region free of poverty." The bank increased the loan it approved by a year-on- year rise of 28 percent to about 7.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2006.

The Board of Governors is the institution's highest policy- making body, which convenes each year to review the bank's past performance on administrative, financial and operational fields and to make new strategies as well as policy guidance to better contribute to the region's growth. The 41st annual meeting will be held in Madrid in May 2008.

Source: Xinhua