This guidance note is designed to help developing member countries of the Asian Development Bank strengthen their health systems and security as they recover from the impact of COVID-19. Drawing on evidence-based and expert-validated interventions, it lays out a comprehensive series of measures policy makers could weave into national agendas. These range from steps to bolster health guidelines and ramp up testing and contact tracing to strategies that can improve community engagement and prevent misinformation. The guidance note discusses ways of addressing local gaps and priorities,...

This technical guidance note lays out the requirements for presenting, auditing, submitting, and publicly disclosing financial reports for sovereign operations financed by ADB in Asia and the Pacific region. It highlights why robust financial reporting, auditing, management, and monitoring of sovereign operations funded or administered by ADB is essential to ensure they comply with its mandate. Stressing the importance of strong borrower governance, it emphasizes how timely reporting and auditing contributes to ADB's broader objectives of poverty reduction, inclusive growth, environmental...

This strategy outlines a regional approach for advancing gender equality and women's empowerment in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). The six GMS countries share common challenges and issues that prevent women from fully benefiting from economic opportunities. Many of these challenges have been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The strategy identifies strategic directions and key entry points to mainstream gender across all operational areas of the GMS Economic Cooperation Program. It has been designed to add value to the GMS Program Strategic Framework 2030 and to complement...