ADB assists Pakistan in a wide range of areas including energy, natural resource management, urban development, transport, regional connectivity, social sector and institutional reforms, which cover good governance and promote democratic principles. This was stated by Ms. Xiaohong Yang, ADB Country Director in Pakistan, in an exclusive interview published in the current issue of SouthAsia magazine as a part of its cover story on the ADB.
“ADB provides development knowledge and expertise to Pakistan to help the government implement policies, programs and projects that utilize international best practices and learnings,” she said.
“We work in a range of sectors such as energy, transport, agriculture and natural resources, water, and urban development.” She further added, “We actively promote the development of the private sector, financial market development and public sector reforms. Women are at the centre of our work. Many of our projects now have a gender component to help improve the lives of women and girls.”
Talking about the role of the Asian Development Bank in the development of Pakistan, Ms. Xiaohong Yang said the ADB had been working with Pakistan to support its key development goals towards building resilience and prosperity. She said the key focus of the ADB had been to support and strengthen Pakistan’s infrastructure, social services and economic growth.
She said the ADB was working very closely with Pakistan’s federal and provincial governments, think tanks and the private sector to improve its infrastructure as well as energy and food security, water, urban and public services deliveries since the ADB’s goal was to improve the quality of life of all citizens of Pakistan.
Talking about ADB’s role in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, the ADB Country Director said CPEC would benefit Pakistan if the country transformed its road corridors into true economic corridors so that Pakistan’s economy could be part of a global production networks and value chain. She said the ADB was supporting Pakistan in developing the proposed economic corridors in line with the country’s industrial development with regard to CPEC.
Giving her views on ADB-funded projects in Pakistan concerning good governance and promotion of democratic principles, Ms. Xiaohong Yang said the ADB partnered with Pakistan in a wide range of areas including energy, natural resource management, urban development, transport, regional connectivity, social sector and institutional reforms.