The Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) yesterday approved ADB’s financial statements and the allocation of its 2019 net income in its first-ever virtual Annual Meeting held amid the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
The approval came at the first stage of the 53rd Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors—a Business Session among the Governors or their designated representatives from 68 members of ADB.
“Our immediate priority is to provide vital support to developing member countries as they confront the COVID-19 pandemic and return their economies to a path of sustainable growth,” said ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa in his remarks to the meeting.
“Our choices and efforts today will determine whether we can overcome the current health care and economic crises,” said the Chair of the Board of Governors, and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Korea Hong Nam-Ki. “The ADB should turn this crisis into an opportunity, while enhancing knowledge sharing on COVID-19 policy responses and expanding support for low-income countries and vulnerable groups.”
The Board of Governors adopted a resolution to allocate $1.069 billion of net income, the highest in the bank’s history, from ADB’s 2019 ordinary capital resources. The 2019 net allocable income is higher than the $841.4 million recorded in 2018, due largely to an increase in income from lending operations and liquidity investments, as well as a drop in no sovereign loan loss provisions. The allocable net income will be distributed as follows: $615.7 million to the ordinary reserve to support ADB’s capital adequacy and provide an earnings base to generate net income; $259.5 million to the Asian Development Fund, which provides grants to ADB’s low-income member countries; $130 million to the Technical Assistance Special Fund, which provides a stable and predictable funding source for ADB’s technical assistance, as well as increased support to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic; $30 million to the Regional Cooperation and Integration Fund; $24 million to the Climate Change Fund; and $10 million to the Asia Pacific Disaster Response Fund.
Governors also approved the bank’s annual financial statements. ADB’s ordinary capital resources’ operating income totaled $1.1 billion in 2019, up from $889 million in 2018. The 2019 net income was $1.554 billion, up from $750 million in 2018.
ADB is actively supporting its members as they address the effects of COVID-19 through its $20 billion response package announced on 13 April.
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