ADB

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Tuesday said it has approved a USD 400 million results-based lending (RBL) program to improve road connectivity in Maharashtra. The loan will be used to improve road connectivity in 34 districts, particularly in the climate-vulnerable and economically lagging Marathwada and Vidarbha regions, linking rural communities to markets, logistics hubs, healthcare, education, and other essential services. Over 1.7 million people living within walking distance of improved roads will benefit, including residents of at least 80 villages and around 410 rural communities, the multilateral development bank said in a statement. These upgrades cover nearly 350 kilometers (km) of state highways and 2,577 km of rural roads. "The program seeks to foster balanced and inclusive economic growth in Maharashtra by improving road connectivity to rural villages, post-harvest centers, and essential social services," ADB Country Director for India Mio Oka said. The RBL moda

Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Masato Kanda urges regional reform and integration, announces $10 bn each for Asean power grid and India's metro projects

The Asian Development Bank and the World Bank have approved loans worth USD 1.5 billion to help Bangladesh reform its banking sector, fight climate change among other projects, according to a media report on Friday. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved a USD 900 million loan, of which USD 500 million will support efforts to stabilise and reform the country's banking sector, while the remaining USD 400 million will promote climate-resilient and inclusive development initiatives, The Daily Star newspaper reported. The USD 500 million policy-based loan aims to strengthen governance, asset quality and stability within Bangladesh's banking system, the ADB said in a statement on Thursday. Separately, the ADB also approved a USD 400 million loan for the second phase of the Climate-Resilient Inclusive Development Programme (CRIDP) aimed at supporting Bangladesh's efforts to adapt to climate change, cut emissions and foster inclusive economic growth. Also on Thursday, the World Bank (W

India has raised strong objections to ADB's financial aid to Pakistan, citing concerns over cross-border terrorism, high defence spend, weak reforms, and governance risks

ADB President Masato Kanda announces a five-year plan aimed at transforming urban infrastructure across India; metro expansion, RRTS corridors and skills programmes in focus

The CM said that the funding is being utilised to develop power, roads, plug-and-play infrastructure, warehousing facilities, and more

Sitharaman is in Milan to attend the 58th annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank (ADB)

Risks could 'potentially be mitigated' by trade agreement between India and the US, it says in April outlook

The agreement was inked on December 20 and the ADB loan, with a sovereign guarantee, will be extended to the India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited

The loan agreement, under the SMILE programme, is aimed at reforming logistics, reducing costs, boosting efficiency, promoting sustainability, and driving inclusive growth in supply chain

The ADB has set a long-term cumulative climate finance lending target of $100 billion between 2019 and 2030

Government of India and the Asian Development Bank on Wednesday signed a USD 200 million (about Rs 1,680 crore) loan to help upgrade water supply, sanitation, mobility, and other urban services in Uttarakhand. The signatories to the loan agreement for the Uttarakhand Livability Improvement Project were Juhi Mukherjee, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance and Mio Oka, country director of India Resident Mission, for ADB, a joint statement said. Mukherjee said the project aligns with Government of India's urban development agenda as well as the Uttarakhand government's initiatives to enhance urban services, aiming to boost livability and sustainability in cities. "The project aims to create urban infrastructure that is resilient to climate and environmental risks such as floods and landslides, ensuring the safety and health of Uttarakhand's population," said Mio. It will also build the capacity of the state agencies in project management, climate and ..

India has since 2010 made noteworthy progress on fossil fuel subsidy reform through a calibrated 'remove', 'target', and 'shift' approach, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said in a new report. "By carefully balancing the combined effect of three key policy levers - retail prices, tax rates, and subsidies on selected petroleum products - the country was able to reduce its fiscal subsidy in the oil and gas sector by 85 per cent, from an unsustainable peak of USD 25 billion in 2013 to USD 3.5 billion in 2023," it said. In its 'Asia-Pacific Climate Report', ADB said India gradually phased out the subsidy on petrol and diesel (from 2010 to 2014) and carried out incremental tax increases (from 2010 to 2017), which created fiscal space to increase government support for renewable energy, electric vehicles, and strengthening of electricity infrastructure. "The additional tax revenues from increases in excise duty on petrol and diesel from 2014 to 2017, a period of low international crude o

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a USD 434.25 million (about Rs 3,600 crore) loan to increase renewable energy capacity and improve energy security in Assam. Addressing the renewable energy capacity shortage in Assam is crucial to meet growing demand and reduce dependency on fossil fuels, ADB said in a statement on Friday. This project will help Assam develop a renewable energy road map and increase its solar energy capacity to achieve its target of 3,000 megawatts (MW) by 2030, it said. The Assam Solar Project will construct a grid-connected solar photovoltaic (PV) facility in Karbi Anglong district with a capacity of 500 MW, it said, adding the project will support the development of a grid-connected battery energy storage system to ensure grid stability and meet peak power demand. This storage system will be established through a joint venture between the Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL) and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. Tripura Power Comp

The World Bank along with the Asian Development Bank in principle has committed to fund USD 1600 million (Rs 13,600 crore) for Amaravati capital city phase-I development and will start releasing the amount from January next year, a senior official of the Andhra Pradesh government has said. Of the total cost of Rs 15,000 crore for the phase-I development, the Central government will be funding the remaining Rs 1,400 crore, the official said, adding the total amount from the World Bank should be drawn within five years. The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), part of the World Bank, which provides loans and guarantees, among others and ADB will be funding USD 800 million (Rs 6,800 crore) each for the project. The repayment of the WB and ADB loans will be taken care of by the Centre, the official said. "The project is being funded jointly by the World Bank and Asian Development Bank. The funds will be released starting from January 30, 2025 or it can happen e

The ADB has lowered its forecast for Bangladesh's economic growth to 5.1 per cent primarily due to supply disruptions caused by political unrest in July and August, a media report said on Wednesday. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) had earlier projected that the overall production of goods and services in the South Asian country would grow by 6.6 per cent for the fiscal year (FY) 2024-25, The Daily Star newspaper reported. The Manila-based multilateral lender said it lowered the country's GDP growth projection for the current fiscal due to violent protests and recent floods. The ADB said the fiscal and monetary policies are expected to remain tight, further dampening consumption and investment demand. The lender said the forecast is highly uncertain as significant downside risks cloud the macroeconomic outlook. "These risks primarily stem from ongoing political instability, a fragile law-and-order situation, and vulnerabilities within the financial sector," it said. The ADB's lat

Due to the government's efforts toward fiscal consolidation, central government debt is projected to decline from 58.2 per cent of GDP in FY2023 to 56.8 per cent in FY2024

JBM currently operates over 1,500 electric buses across 10 states and more than 15 major airports in India

IFC, ADB and DEG on Tuesday announced an investment of USD 275 million (about Rs 2,280 crore) into renewable energy solutions platform Fourth Partner Energy Ltd (FPEL). The consortium's investment will infuse capital to fund FPEL's business expansion plans which include a target portfolio of 3.5 GW of renewable energy assets by 2026, a statement said. FPEL has an installed base of 1.5 GW of green assets and is set to commission the first phase of its maiden 575 MW wind solar hybrid project under the ISTS (Inter State Transmission System) route, in Karnataka, later this quarter, it said. World Bank's International Finance Corporation (IFC) is leading the consortium with an investment of USD 125 million, while Asian Development Bank (ADB) is infusing USD 100 million and Germany's Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG) is at USD 50 million to complete this round of fundraising, it said. "We welcome IFC, ADB and DEG as new partners to join our existing high quality .

Asian Development Bank and the Government of India recently signed a USD 200 million (about Rs 1,700 crore) loan to improve solid waste management and sanitation in 100 cities across eight states in the country. The signatories to the loan agreement for the Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0 -Comprehensive Municipal Waste Management in Indian Cities Program were Juhi Mukherjee, Joint Secretary, Finance Ministry, and Mio Oka, Country Director for Asian Development Bank (ADB) - India Resident Mission, the Manila-based multilateral funding agency said in a statement on Tuesday. After signing the loan agreement, Mukherjee said that the programme supports the objectives of the government's Swachh Bharat (Clean India) Mission - Urban 2.0 by enhancing sanitation and solid waste management infrastructure, including waste segregation, collection and disposal. "This programme is guided by lessons derived from ADB's experience in urban infrastructure development across several states and will incorpora