The Asian Development Bank (ADB) was founded in 1966 with the goal of eradicating poverty in the region. The Asian Development Bank started its operations in western Asia (the Caucasus region) and Central Asia in the 2000s and soon became one of the region’s leading investors. The Bank provides both sovereign and private sector loans in various areas, such as energy, environmental infrastructure, transport, urban development and agriculture.
Its major investment programme is Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC), which finances roads, railways and energy infrastructure to bring together countries such as Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, the People’s Republic of China, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan and to ensure economic growth within the region.
Stay informed
We believe that the billions of public money should work for people and the environment. Subscribe to our monthly newsletters to receive latest updates on the ADB and other public financial institutions.
The ADB’s claims that it is resilient and sustainable are unjustified until it respects human rights and protects the environment and the livelihoods of the people in its countries of operation.
LATEST UPDATE
Background
In 2018, the ADB invested more than USD 1.3 billion in the Southern Gas Corridor project, which was supposed to bring gas from Azerbaijan to Europe. But the billions in public investments will not only go towards a stranded asset, but will also boost Azerbaijan’s dictatorial regime and cause upheaval for communities the pipeline must cross in Turkey, Greece, Albania and Italy.
In 2021, the ADB, together with its counterpart multilateral development banks, committed to aligning its investments with the Paris Agreement, with a deadline for public sector projects to do so by 1 June 2023. However, although the Bank’s newly approved energy strategy (September 2021) does not support any natural gas exploration or drilling activities, it can still selectively support midstream and downstream natural gas projects.
The Bank’s public and private sector operations often negatively impact the region’s poorest and most vulnerable communities. The ADB is still not equipped or incentivised to effectively address social and environmental risks and the human rights implications of their operations. It lacks a rights-based safeguards policy that would ensure the protection of the human rights and the environment, engage meaningful public participation and remedy the risks of the project-affected communities.
2026 Annual Meeting of the Asian Development Bank
Moving beyond past failures
The East–West Highway and the North–South Corridor – two of Georgia’s most ambitious road projects supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) – have had devastating social, environmental and cultural impacts.
The state body responsible – the Ministry of Infrastructure and its Roads Department – has a well-documented record of bullying and harassment, yet it has faced no meaningful accountability from its international funders.
Now, despite a catalogue of unresolved failures, the ADB is considering pouring yet more money into Georgian road infrastructure.
Without serious, enforceable preconditions established prior to approval, these new road projects risk replicating the same institutional failures, corruption vulnerabilities, and safeguard violations that have systematically undermined the impact of existing ADB investments.
Partner publications
Modernising Tajikistan’s waste management system
Tajikistan’s waste system relies on unsanitary landfills and the precarious labour of informal waste pickers. Progress towards realising a circular economy in the country will depend on sustained political and financial commitment for comprehensive reform, supported by a robust legal framework, extended producer responsibility, strengthened local institutional capacity, transparency, public participation and the socio-economic inclusion of informal waste workers.
More buses, but is Bishkek’s public transport system better?
In 2023, Bishkek launched reforms aimed at improving the efficiency and attractiveness of public transport in Kyrgyzstan’s capital by reducing congestion and enhancing environmental conditions.
While the city has introduced modern buses, opened new routes and redirected its historic minibuses (marshrutkas) to the outskirts, these structural changes have yet to resolve deep-seated systemic issues.
Uzbekistan solar project: Local concerns and ADB oversight risks
Across Central Asia, the ADB has increased its financial commitments and efforts to promote regional cooperation, with a focus on infrastructure, digitalisation and climate-resilient development.
The Bank continues to play a leading role in supporting cross-border programmes like the Middle Corridor and the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) programme.
However, a highly volatile geopolitical context, shrinking civic space and increasingly restrictive national legislation in the ADB’s countries of operation may negatively impact proper due diligence and public oversight.
Evaluation of potential impacts of wind farm projects on saker falcon and other raptors in Uzbekistan
The Bash and Dzhankeldy wind projects were visited in the period 26 May and 5 June 2025 for a general field assessment on the habitats, the breeding raptor populations and theprojects’ potential impacts. Based on the results, raptor species listed in the baseline surveys are still present in the area and continuous monitoring is essential to prevent their loss.
ADB PROJECTS WE MONITOR
Georgia’s East–West and North–South road projects: Counting the true costs of highway expansion
The East–West Highway and the North–South Corridor – two key road infrastructure projects supported by major multilateral development banks, have had devastating social, environmental and cultural impacts in Georgia.
Read more
Indorama Agro: Uzbekistan’s infamous cotton producer
Despite being Uzbekistan’s largest cotton producer and receiving millions in development loans from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) – institutions that promote modernisation and corporate responsibility – Indorama Agro faces multiple complaints of worker mistreatment and retaliation.
Read more
The Khada Valley, Georgia
The Khada Valley in Georgia brings together exceptional biodiversity, precious cultural and archeological heritage, and mountainous villages which have preserved rich traditions and historical lifestyles. But all of this might vanish if a 23-kilometer road from Georgia to Russia – the Kvesheti-Kobi project – is built.
Read more
LATEST UPDATES
Georgia’s East–West and North–South road projects: The billion-dollar infrastructure gambles that should make the ADB think twice
Publication | 29 April, 2026The East–West Highway and the North–South Corridor – two of Georgia’s most ambitious road projects supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) – have had devastating social, environmental and cultural impacts.
Read more
More buses, but is the system better? Evaluating Bishkek’s public transport network
Blog entry | 29 April, 2026Over the past few years, the public transport fleet in Bishkek – Kyrgyzstan’s capital city – has changed visibly. In a city where privately operated minibuses, known as marshrutkas, dominated for years, new gas-powered buses and electric buses are now in service.
Read more
Kambarata hydropower project: greater scrutiny from international banks is needed
Blog entry | 19 December, 2025Kyrgyzstan is promoting the massive 1,860 MW Kambarata-1 Hydropower Plant (HPP) as a solution to its ongoing energy crisis. The project, a joint effort with Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan on Naryn River, is actively seeking funding from international financial institutions like the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Investment Bank (EIB).
Read more
