ADB President to review preparations for annual meet

Singapore, Mar 6 (UNI) The Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Haruhiko Kuroda will visit India this week to review preparations for ADB's forthcoming 39th Annual Meeting in Hyderabad.

The Annual Meeting of ADB's Board of Governors takes place between May 3 to 6 at the new Hyderabad International Convention Center-- India's largest.

The event is expected to attract government leaders, representatives of civil society groups, the private sector, and journalists from around the world, said an ADB in a statement today.

On his official visit from March 9 to 11, Mr Kuroda will view the convention center and meet senior officials in Hyderabad and New Delhi.

In Hyderabad he will 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.

The annual meetings are statutory occasions for the Governors of ADB members to provide guidance on ADB administrative, financial, and operational directions. The last ADB Annual Meeting was held in New Delhi in 1990.

Among the issues expected to figure prominently at this year's Annual Meeting are ADB's medium 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.

The Annual Meeting includes a seminar series tackling such themes as Knowledge-Based Economies in the 21st Century, Transforming Asian Economies with E-Services, Asian Economic Integration, Infrastructure, and Sustainable Energy Development.

India, a founder member of ADB, is ADB's fourth biggest shareholder overall (behind Japan and the United States, and the China). ADB total lending assistance till the end of 2005 for India amounts to about 15.4 billion dollars while about 115.8 million do llars was provided for TA grants.

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 dollars in recent years to around 2.65 billion dollars by 2008.

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