In a restricted sense the Asian Development Bank, which held its third annual meeting at Seoul on Friday (April 10), is a counterpart in the East of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (the World Bank). Like the World Bank, the A.D.B. raises resources for lending to developing countries from the capital markets of rich countries. In 1968, for instance, it raised 60 million deutsche marks through bonds floated in West Germany. The A.D.B.’s Special Fund is its soft loan window comparable to the International Development Association of the World Bank. The A.D.B.’s assistance to the growing regions is, like the World Bank’s, to be doubled at short intervals of time. The question that naturally arises is why there should be a duplication of such lending institutions. A clear answer to this is provided in the A.D.B’s latest annual report. It says: “The needs, the problems, the objectives — and above all the hopes — of the Asian region may not differ materially in the long run from those elsewhere; but the techniques and processes needed may be quite different from those fashioned for use in other areas. While a knowledge of the skills and techniques developed elsewhere is important and essential, the ‘knowhow’ of regional development must have an indigenous basis”.
