ADB operations met result goals, on budget last year, says report

Frankfurt, Germany—The Asian Development Bank (ADB) met the bulk of its operational targets in 2015, with most projects completed within budget, while financing hit new record highs over the year, according to an ADB performance review released recently. 

“As this report demonstrates, ADB’s operations have consistently delivered results that have benefitted millions of people in Asia and the Pacific,” said Indu Bhushan, director general of ADB’s Strategy and Policy Department.

“However, we cannot rest on our laurels. ADB will continue to undertake reforms to meet its remaining challenges and rise to new ones in order to better meet the needs of our developing member countries,” he added.

The Development Effectiveness Review (DEfR) 2015 Report—ADB’s ninth annual corporate performance assessment—shows that it met targeted results for 13 out of 17 performance indicators, with about 80 percent of sovereign projects carried out within their original budgets over the review period.

Among the achievements were the buildings or upgrading of 10,000 kilometers of roads, and the installation of 400 megawatts of power generation, half of it from renewable-energy sources. Water, sanitation, and irrigation projects also benefitted millions of households, while upgraded school facilities are being used by almost 7 million students.

ADB’s stepped-up efforts to support gender mainstreaming bore fruit with gender targets in completed sovereign operations meeting the 70 percent level for the first time in the 2013–2015 period.

Meanwhile, ADB helped its developing member-countries develop 20 public-private partnership projects—an all-time high.

Financing approvals for new operations also reached a record high of $16.3 billion in 2015, up 20 percent from 2014, while both disbursements and co-financing in 2015 marked another annual record.

In addition, ADB shortened its processing time for both sovereign and non-sovereign operations and reduced internal administrative expenses by more than 10 percent per $1 million disbursed.

However a number of performance concerns remain, with the overall success rates for operations at 72 percent, still below the 80 percent target level. Operational efficiency was weighed down by implementation delays, which averaged almost 2 years and affected 90 percent of sovereign projects.

There was a decline in the disbursement ratio for sovereign projects, which was affected by low project readiness and slow procurement, among other reasons.

In terms of organizational effectiveness, the share of women among international staff fell from 34.5 percent in 2014 to 33.8 percent in 2015, while the overall staff engagement level also declined in 2015.

To tackle these obstacles, ADB has been implementing its Strategy 2020 midterm review action plan since 2014, which includes 10-point procurement actions to speed up procurement, and faster approvals for small non sovereign transactions.

Last December ADB approved new reforms to boost project readiness, cut start-up and completion delays, and raise efficiency and overall success ratings.

The measures include the encouragement of advance contracting and retroactive financing for contracts that are signed before loans are approved. ADB has also simplified review requirements to quicken the pace of its sovereign project disbursements and is taking steps to further expand co-financing.

In addition, efforts are being made to raise women’s representation among international staff, improve staff perception, and optimize human resources.

ADB will—in line with the midterm review of its long-term strategic framework, Strategy 2020—continue to streamline its business processes and decentralize decision making to operational departments and resident missions to support its drive to deliver better and faster results for developing member countries.

ADB is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth, and regional integration.

Headquartered in Manila, ADB will mark in December 50 years of development partnership in the region. It is owned by 67 members, with 48 of these from the region. In 2015, ADB assistance totaled $27.2 billion, including co-financing of $10.7 billion.