We Are Not Leaving Anyone Behind
ADB Partnerships
Get the latest news on ADB’s cofinancing efforts and discover stories of partnerships that changed lives for the better.
Asia in the last 3 decades showed incredible progress, reducing the number of people living in extreme poverty from 1.5 billion in 1990 to 263 million in 2015. But the COVID-19 pandemic has threatened this progress, with Asia’s economy contracting for the first time in 6 decades in 2020. Getting back on track means building back better through stronger social protection, better quality jobs, and greater access to opportunities and services for everyone to realize their potential.
LEAVE NO ONE BEHIND
COVID-19 has eroded Asia’s hard-earned progress. Growth in 2019 may have been slow but it was robust—regional growth was at 5.4% in 2019. The pandemic changed all that.?Latest ADB assessments show that the pandemic has now cost the world $4.8 to $7.4 trillion, with an additional impact of $3.1 to $5.4 trillion in 2021. Developing Asia bears about 28% of these losses. Even as vaccine rollouts scale up, hope for the future remains fragile.
ADB aims to reduce poverty in all its forms in Asia and the Pacific. Guided by its agenda “to leave no one behind,” it aspires to help provide social protection to all, generate quality jobs, and increase access to opportunities by the poor and most vulnerable. Even amid the pandemic, ADB has continued to drive forward this agenda, with the support of its partners.
HEALTH, SOCIAL PROTECTION, AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR ALL
Despite the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, there were several?gains from Asia’s experience. Many countries in the region have displayed strong political will and commitment, decisiveness, and flexibility in ensuring that no one is left behind. ADB and its partners have supported Asia and the Pacific in ensuring health, education, adequate social protection, and economic opportunities for all.
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THE WAY AHEAD
Reducing poverty in all its forms across Asia and the Pacific requires innovative approaches. The pandemic has forced us to confront new development landscape while long-term systemic issues have been exacerbated by the pandemic. Inequalities in access to education and health have been heightened in stark relief. Poverty is deeper, opportunity is more uneven, and unemployment is steeper.
However, the pandemic also allowed ADB to plan and implement a recovery that is green, resilient, and inclusive. It is an opportunity to ensure that no one gets left behind. The partnerships created in 2020 to fight the pandemic serve as a springboard to build back better, together.