ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK

(ADB), organization established under the auspices of ESCAP (the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific) that entered into force in August 1966. Thirty regional countries of South, Southeast, and East Asia and the South Pacific and 14 nonregional countries of western Europe and North America constitute the membership. Each member appoints a governor and an alternate who combine to form the Board of Governors, which in turn selects a 12-member operating Board of Directors. ADB is the executive agency for the UN Development Programme authorized to supervise national and regional projects. The headquarters are in Manila. ADB aims to foster economic growth in Asia by administering direct loans or technical assistance to any member group. Such activities facilitate project preparation and implementation, policy formation, institutional building, and sectoral studies.