Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Haruhiko Kuroda will be visiting India this week to review the preparations for the bank's forthcoming 39th annual meeting to be held in Hyderabad. | |
| The four-day annual meeting of the ADB's board of governors will take place from May 3 at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre. The event is expected to attract 2,000-3,000 government officials, representatives of civil society groups and the private sector, and journalists from around the world. |
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| During his three-day official visit from March 9, Kuroda will visit the convention centre and meet officials both in Hyderabad and New Delhi. |
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| In Hyderabad, he will also speak at the Administrative Staff College of India and in New Delhi, he will host a press conference and speak at the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, according to an ADB communiqué. |
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| Among the issues expected to figure prominently at this year's annual meeting are ADB's mid-term strategy, global imbalances affecting Asia, India and South Asia's role in a region that is rapidly integrating and the country's massive infrastructure needs. |
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| The meeting includes a series of seminars covering such themes as Knowledge-based economies in the 21st Century, Transforming Asian Economies with e-Services, Asian Economic Integration, and Sustainable Energy Development. ADB's total lending assistance to India till 2005 amounted to about $15.4 billion. |
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| According to the latest India Country Strategy and Program Update, ADB plans to scale up lending levels to India from an average of around $1.24 billion in recent years to around $2.65 billion by 2008. |
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