Running order

00:00 Sara Pantuliano (ODI) – welcome and opening remarks

05:38 Masatsugu Asakawa (ADB) – on the key challenges lying ahead for the Asia-Pacific region, and why it matters for Europe to focus on them

13:25 Masatsugu Asakawa – on how the ADB is planning to deliver on its commitment to ensuring three-quarters of its projects support climate change mitigation and/or adaptation by 2030

20:47 Kate Hampton (CIFF) – on the priority actions that MDBs should take to deliver on their climate commitments

28:12 Masatsugu Asakawa – on the extent to which the ADB has embraced the recommendations from the G20 expert panel on the review of MDBs’ capital adequacy frameworks (CAFs), and the innovations it has introduced

33:15 Chris Humphrey (ODI) and Masatsugu Asakawa – on the key innovations the ADB has contributed to in the context of the CAF review’s recommendations, and the lessons it can offer to other MDBs

43:05 Annalisa Prizzon (ODI) – on the key priorities for MDBs to operate better as a system

48:52 All participants – Q&A session

01:05:22 Sara Pantuliano – closing remarks

About the event

The Covid-19 pandemic was a stark reminder that global challenges need globally coordinated solutions. Meanwhile, pressure to contain the increase in global temperatures has escalated.

Multilateral development banks (MDBs) are – in principle – well-placed to address global or regional challenges. They are major contributors to the international climate finance commitment, and have taken a number of steps to coordinate national development and international climate goals.

But MDBs need to evolve to deal with the challenges of the 21st century – challenges that are even more demanding and complex than the ones these institutions were originally set up to address. These include scaling up financial resources and programmes to deal with the climate crisis and working much better together as a system.

In this MDB Leaders’ Series panel discussion, Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Masatsugu Asakawa outlines the ADB’s priorities as well as his vision for the bank’s role in MDB reform.

The panel reflects on three main sets of policy issues:

- How is the ADB planning to deliver on its commitment to ensuring that three-quarters of its projects support climate change mitigation and/or adaptation by 2030? What reforms is it implementing?

- To what extent has the ADB embraced the recommendations from the G20 expert panel’s review of MDBs’ capital adequacy frameworks? What innovations has it introduced?

- What is the role of the ADB in the MDB system and what are its priorities within the MDB reform agenda?

Learn more about ODI’s MDB Leaders’ Series.