Crisis X: Is Asia ready to face the next pandemic?
COVID-19 has highlighted the importance of collaboration among governments and stakeholders to better prepare for the next unknown crisis.
Social development and protection
Building public trust for managing the pandemic’s psychological impacts in the Philippines
The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on the psychological and social well-being of many Filipinos. Stay-at-home orders have left many in isolation and experiencing feelings of fear and anxiety, largely over economic hardship and uncertainty.
Levelling up innovation in Asia
Innovation is playing a vital role in the economic, social, and environmental progress of Asia and the Pacific and has been an important factor in the region's rapid and successful transformation. However, many countries in the region lag behind, innovating at a fraction of the pace as countries in similar or even lower income groups.
Circularity of plastics: From managing waste to generating less waste
With urbanization and the growing global population, much focus has been placed on finding solutions for improving solid waste management as a way to curb the growing amounts of waste being generated. However, governments should instead look at the root cause of the issue and shift toward exploring ways to generate less waste.
Balancing the Spillover Effects of High-Speed Rail Infrastructure Investment in Asia
Comprehensive infrastructure projects have proven to be efficient in reducing poverty, community burdens, and production costs and raising competitiveness within and between regions. However, investment in specific forms of infrastructure can help balance the trade-offs between huge infrastructure demand and scarce financial resources, especially in developing countries.
COVID-19’s impact in Asia shapes blueprint for sustainable economic recovery
The economic impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Asia highlights the importance of entrenching longer-term sustainability and economic resilience into the recovery process. The macroeconomic effects of the pandemic, as well as the impact on firms and households in Asia, are featured in a new ADBI edited book, COVID-19 Impacts and Policy Options: An Asian Perspective.
Supporting the creative economy for sustainable development in Southeast Asia
Many efforts have been made in Southeast Asia to support creative industries and boost the creative economy, realizing the ability of knowledge-based economic activities to foster income generation, job creation, and export earnings while promoting social inclusion, cultural diversity, and human development (UNCTAD 2010: 10).
How can the private sector help solve the sanitation challenge?
The private sector can play a vital role in solving the sanitation challenge. The following four aspects highlight the importance of private sector participation in sanitation in developing countries, including in Asia.
Lessons for the informal sector from COVID-19
The informal sector, which employs over 62% of the global population, is a fundamental source of livelihood for over 2 billion people (ILO 2020). Here, “employment” includes self-employment, and the informal sector refers to the part of the economy that is generally not monitored by a tax authority or other forms of government. Before the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the informal sector accounted for 87.7%, 51.5%, and 55.7% of the population in low-, middle-, and high-income countries, respectively (ILO 2018a).
Agriculture and natural resources, Governance and public sector management, Health, Poverty, Social development and protection
Rebooting food systems to achieve the unfinished agenda of global food security
Food insecurity continues to be a pressing issue worldwide, despite scientific innovation and technological advancements in agriculture. Therefore, food security continues to be at the center of the global development agenda. The burgeoning demand for food due to exponential growth in the world’s population and the mismatch between demand and supply due to factors such as climate change, loss of soil fertility, land degradation, water scarcity, food loss and waste, and inefficient distribution systems, have exacerbated the problem of food insecurity.