Civil society groups monitoring the Asian Development Bank’s 57th annual meeting in Georgia are challenging the bank’s policies and projects, alleging detrimental impacts on communities, environments and civic spaces.
The NGO Forum network and its allies underscored the need for the ADB to be more accountable and reform its practices. They point to the ongoing restrictions on civil society in Georgia as a worrying backdrop to their broader critique.
“The ADB’s role cannot be overlooked” amid tightening restrictions on NGOs in countries like Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, along with shrinking space for civil society in Mongolia, Vietnam, India and Bangladesh, the groups said in a statement.
They criticized the ADB’s draft Environmental and Social Safeguarding (ESF) framework, released in October 2023. The groups said it fails to meet the highest standards and lacks transparency in its development process.
Despite two years of engagement, CSOs have not seen how their inputs were incorporated into the draft policy, the groups said in a statement.
The groups also criticized the ADB’s continued support for coal and fossil gas projects, arguing it contradicts the bank’s climate commitments. They called for a complete phase-out of fossil fuel support and closure of loopholes allowing coal financing.
The statement also criticized what it called the ADB’s disregard for human rights, labor rights and gender considerations. The groups urged the bank to adopt a human rights-based approach aligned with international frameworks.
