Six ADB board members visiting PNG

Six members of the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) board of directors are visiting Papua New Guinea for five days from today to discuss its continued support to the country’s development.
The board members – comprising executive directors, team leader Kshatrapati Shivaji, In-chang Song (co-host ED) Scott Dawson (co-host ED), Kris Panday, Mario Di Maio and alternate executive director Jin Lu – will meet Prime Minister Peter O’Neill, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Treasury and ADB governor for PNG Charles Abel, and other senior Government officials and development partners to discuss ADB’s work programme in the country.
ADB has a broad range of projects in transport, health, public sector management, energy, water and sanitation, financial sector, climate change, and private sector development in PNG.
The visit programme will include site visits to ADB-supported civil aviation, energy, urban and infrastructure projects.
The board members will participate in an opening ceremony for the Jaffa Community Health Post in Goroka, which was built by the Rural Primary Health Services Delivery Project co-financed by ADB and the governments of Australia and PNG.
The group will also explore new opportunities for ADB to support Papua New Guinea.
The ADB board members will interact with project beneficiaries, meet with private sector representatives and staff at ADB’s PNG resident mission.
The ADB board group will also share with government and other stakeholders details of ADB’s emerging Strategy 2030.
They will discuss how ADB is looking towards improving its modalities of knowledge-sharing and delivery of financial products.
Potential for flexibility in ADB’s procurement and safeguards procedures will be canvassed.