Activists are pressing the 28-year old Asian Development Bank (ADB) for greater reform of its policies, saying it should do more to reduce poverty instead of just focusing on growth and luring the private sector into the region. NGOS and the ADB differ on issues ranging from indigenous peoples, policies on displaced people and viability of projects.

The 1994 Annual Report of the Bank has pointed to a changed emphasis: projects dealing with women, poverty reduction, population planning, health and education are getting more attention. But the NGO ire remains directed on ADB-funded projects with doubtful economic and environmental viability, like the Theun-Hinboun in Laos. (IPS)