Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Masatsugu Asakawa and Agence Francaise de Development (AFD) Chief Executive Remy Rioux today (Thursday) signed a new Partnership Framework Agreement (PFA) to guide development collaboration in Asia and the Pacific from 2022 to 2028.
ADB and AFD agreed to a joint cofinancing target of $3.0 billion for 2023-2025. Activities will focus on climate change, natural resource management and biodiversity, blue economy, and social imbalances and inequalities across Asia and the Pacific, according to a statement.
"This new agreement is a testament to our enduring partnership, which continues to strengthen as we address the challenges faced by ADB’s members in Asia and the Pacific,” said Mr Asakawa. “I also appreciate that our AFD partners share ADB’s commitment to support the region on its path to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.”
“This new PFA provides us with the right incentives to ramp up our joint actions to address sustainability challenges in Asia where development outcomes are of global significance,” said Mr Rioux.
“Our way forward is to mobilize a large and impactful range of partners, throughout Asia, by leveraging the trust ADB and AFD have now built for 25 years,” he added.
Since 2016, AFD has provided $2.3 billion in cofinancing for 26 ADB projects worth $5.2 billion, for a total of $7.5 billion in financing.
The new PFA will deepen collaboration in areas of mutual interest supporting sustainable and inclusive growth to reduce poverty in Asia and the Pacific. The partnership encompasses cofinancing operations, technical assistance, knowledge sharing and joint communication, knowledge production, research and staff exchange. ADB and AFD have been engaged in collaborative activities since 1997, when they cofinanced their first project.
France is among ADB’s biggest bilateral cofinancing partners. AFD is France’s development finance institution and has worked for 70 years to alleviate poverty and support economic growth in both developing and emerging countries.
