Ulaanbaatar, May 13, 2025 /MONTSAME/. On May 5, 2025, the Business Session of the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) was held during the 58th ADB Annual Meeting in Milan, the Italian Republic. 

Addressing the Business Session of the Board of Governors, ADB President Masato Kanda stressed that rising trade tensions, market volatility, and climate‑driven shocks threaten recent development gains across Asia and the Pacific.

ADB President Masato Kanda noted that new capital‑management reforms have lifted the Bank’s lending headroom by up to USD 100 billion over the next decade, enabling ADB operations to expand by about 50 percent without additional donor contributions. The ADB President highlighted the USD 5 billion replenishment of the Asian Development Fund and Technical Assistance Special Fund as vital support for the region’s poor and vulnerable countries.

In 2024, ADB committed USD 24.3 billion in finance, including record private‑sector operations and a 15 percent jump in concessional lending. Looking ahead, the Bank will scale up work on climate resilience, private‑sector mobilization, targeting USD 13 billion annually by 2030, regional cooperation, and digital transformation, while improving debt‑management tools for small island economies.

At the Governors’ Business Session, the Board of Governors adopted Resolution No. 433 on Financial Statements, Management's Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting, and Independent Auditor's Reports, Resolution No. 434 on Allocation of Net Income, and Resolution No. 435 on the Place and Date of the 60th ADB Annual Meeting, which is set to take place in Nagoya, Japan, in 2027. The 59th ADB Annual Meeting will be held in Samarkand, the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Deputy Prime Minister of Mongolia Dorjkhand Togmid, who is the Temporary Alternate Governor of Mongolia in the ADB, remarked, “It is with great pleasure to address the Board of Governors at the Fifty-Eighth Annual Meeting of the ADB. I would like to take this opportunity to extend my sincere gratitude to the people of Italy for their hospitality and to Italy for hosting the Annual Meeting.

The world is undergoing rapid changes, stemming from global geopolitical and trade policy tensions and increasingly frequent extreme weather events. According to the recent projections of the International Monetary Fund, global growth is projected to drop to 2.8 percent in 2025 and 3 percent in 2026. For developing member countries in Asia and the Pacific, these ongoing shifts are directly impacting the economy and posing additional risks. As a result, countries in the region remain vulnerable to these uncertainties, and addressing their current development challenges requires increased financing and more innovative approaches.

Over the last three decades of partnership since Mongolia joined as a member country, ADB has become our crucial partner, undertaking essential measures to assist us in our social and economic development. For Mongolia, improving infrastructure, enhancing energy security, transitioning to clean energy, supporting industrial growth, attracting foreign direct investment, and fostering a more interconnected and diversified economy have emerged as key priorities. 

We note with appreciation that ADB is scaling up its financing for the private sector development of its members under its new operating model and taking transformative reforms to improve its operations to respond to the unique challenges of its members.  

We would also like to call on ADB and partners to continue their efforts in addressing overarching economic, social, and environmental challenges, while also strengthening the resilience of the region.

With that said, please allow me to express my gratitude once again to the Government of Italy* for hosting the Annual Meeting. As always, we remain thankful to ADB for its support for Mongolia’s development and look forward to our continued cooperation in the following years.”

The Business Session of the Board of Governors is the main meeting of the Governors that takes place at each ADB Annual Meeting. Governors adopt resolutions, take note of and approve documents related to the business, finance, administration, and operations of ADB, and provide guidance to the institution through their statements. This session also provides an opportunity for the ADB President to report on progress since the previous meeting and to share key organizational messages from ADB Management.