This paper is an edited version of the text of the Distinguished Persons Lecture delivered by Mr Haruhiko Kuroda, President of Asian Development Bank at ESCAP in Bangkok on 11 November 2010. The region needs to invest in an efficient system of regional infrastructure for a seamless Asia to...

Asia was faced with a sudden and sharp crisis in 2008-2009, the proximate cause of which was reversals in foreign capital flows, not unlike the regional crisis a decade ago. How different has this boom and bust cycle of international capital flows been from the previous one? The paper examines...

The subprime mortgage crisis erupted in the United States in mid-2007 and was then transformed into the global financial crisis after the failure of Lehman Brothers in September 2008. The total amount of write-downs of loans and securities by financial institutions for 2007-2010 is estimated to...

This paper assesses quantitatively the importance of living or working environmental constraints in people's activity limitations in day-to-day work/school and participation restrictions (such as joining in community activities). It applies an Ordered Logit Model to examine data from a WHO/ESCAP...

Building productive capacities is a top priority for least developed countries to promote development and graduate from the status of least developed country. This paper discusses the challenges and the opportunities for these countries to build their productive capacities. It argues that the...

Asia and the Pacific, despite visible signs of prosperity due to years of rapid economic growth, has made insufficient progress in freeing its population from hunger and malnutrition, the most basic marker of true development. Given the importance of reducing poverty and hunger as core...

This paper argues that, with the removal of international sanctions and the opening up of the economy, fostering economic activity and facilitating investment in new and more productive industries will best facilitate inclusive economic growth in Myanmar. With a perspective that emphasizes the...

This paper approaches inclusive development in South and South-West Asia through the framework of structural transformation and productive capacities. It discusses the opportunities for these countries to build their productive capacities through product diversification and presents a list of...

Catastrophes caused by natural hazards that hit “without warning” serve as grim reminders of the challenge that governments and civil society face in identifying and protecting the areas that are at risk of extreme events. This paper presents a methodology to estimate the threshold of social...

Remarkable growth and structural transformation in a number of developing Asian countries in the period after World War II have earned them the reputation for being “models” of successful development. Among the factors that contributed to their success were macroeconomic and regulatory...