Böcker av Asian Development Bank

The 47th edition of this series, includes the latest available economic, financial, social, and environmental indicators for the 48 regional members of the Asian Development Bank. It presents the latest key statistics on development issues concerning the economies of Asia and the Pacific to a wide audience, including policy makers, development practitioners, government officials, researchers, students, and the general public. Part I of this issue presents the current status of economies of Asia and the Pacific with respect to the Sustainable Development Goals based on selected indicators from the global indicator framework. Part II comprises statistical indicators that capture economic, financial, social, and environmental developments. Part III presents key statistics and stylized facts on the phenomenon of global value chains.

The Asian Water Development Outlook charts progress in water security in Asia and the Pacific over the past 5 years. This 2016 edition of the report uses the latest available data to assess water security in five key dimensions: household access to piped potable water and improved sanitation, economic water security, providing better urban water services to build more livable cities, restoring healthy rivers and ecosystems, and resilience to water disasters. The region shows a positive trend in strengthening water security since the 2013 edition of the report, when 38 out of 49 countries were assessed as water-insecure. In 2016, that number dropped to 29 out of 48 countries. This study was supported by ADB's Water Financing Partnership Facility.

Analyses economic performance in the past year and offers forecasts for the next two years for the 45 economies in Asia and the Pacific that make up developing Asia. This edition highlights the need to invigorate developing Asia's potential growth, whose decline since its 2007 peak explains much of the region's growth slowdown since the global financial crisis.

The challenging geography and poor infrastructure of many Pacific nations mean digital financial services (DFS) are a particularly effective means of enhancing financial inclusion in the region. However, a number of major challenges confront DFS in the Pacific, including the establishment of reliable agent networks and the building of sufficient consumer trust in DFS for it to become a viable payments channel. This report examines the current use of DFS in the Pacific, analyzes the issues that need to be addressed, and provides recommendations for increasing financial inclusion in the region. This publication was produced by the Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative, a regional technical assistance facility cofinanced by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Government of Australia and the New Zealand government.

Developing Asia faces considerable headwinds from slow recovery in the major industrial economies and moderating prospects for the large economies of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and India. Subdued demand from the industrial economies and the PRC has delayed the expected pickup in growth in other parts of Asia, including Southeast Asia's larger economies. The region must strengthen its resilience under external shocks. Macroprudential policy can engender enough independence in monetary policy to counter destabilizing capital flows, while a well-developed domestic financial system can alleviate dependence on external borrowing and thereby reduce risk from currency depreciation. The region must mobilize untapped resources to give growth a much needed boost. This Asian Development Outlook Update 2015 highlights how realizing women's equal rights and contributions to economic and political life can yield ample benefits. While the region has made considerable progress over the past several decades in closing gender gaps in health and education, much remains to be done to erase them in the labor market. This will both marshal more human resources to boost economic growth and do the right thing for women as individuals.

This report highlights emerging trends in Aid for Trade (AfT) and trade performance, and explores them in the context of the theme of the 5th Global Review of AfT: "e;Reducing Trade Costs for Inclusive, Sustainable Growth."e; Divided into four chapters, the introduction sets the stage by describing general trends in trade costs, AfT, and inclusiveness; Chapter 2 introduces the idea and opportunities of e-commerce for the region; Chapter 3 analyzes trends in trade costs in Central, East, South, and Southeast Asia; and Chapter 4 offers an in-depth case study of AfT and trade costs in the Pacific.

This guide serves as a reference for implementing performance-based road maintenance contracts in Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) countries to promote effective and efficient maintenance of road networks.

Offers guidance on the principles, methods, and practice of impact evaluation. It contains material for a range of audiences, from those who may use or manage impact evaluations to applied researchers.

This report explores the role of technology in providing solutions to some of the key labour market challenges that Asian countries with progressive aging must face in order to boost productivity and sustain growth and development.

Since the 1997 Asian financial crisis, countries in East Asia have made efforts to promote regional monetary and financial cooperation to complement the evolving international financial architecture.