News: ICT-related News

Almost 1,500 years ago in the sixth and seventh century, southern Kazakhstan was part of the famous Silk Road that carried goods, ideas and cultural influences from as far as China to Europe.

Where are Asia’s economies headed to in the short and long term? What shape are they in to withstand future financial crises? And how can they respond to the yawning rich-poor divide, now a key concern among Asian and global policymakers? These were some of the key points discussed over the first two days of business at our 47th Annual Meeting, held in Astana, Kazakhstan.

With its stunning, modern architecture, crisp blue skies, and myriad influences, Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana, provides a dramatic backdrop for ADB’s 47th Meeting of the Board of Governors that starts 2 May and concludes three days later.

Providing a decent, secure and dignified way of life for the elderly is set to become one of the most pressing concerns facing policymakers in Asia in coming years.

Developing Asia’s impressive growth continues but faces a new challenge — inequality is on the rise. Over the last few decades, the region has lifted people out of poverty at an unprecedented rate. But more recent experience contrasts with the ‘growth with equity’ story that characterised the newly industrialised economies’ transformation in the 1960s and 1970s.