FIGHTING CORRUPTION
SECURING
DEVELOPMENT
FUNDS FOR
A POVERTY-
FREE ASIA
CLARE WEE
Head Office of
Anticorruption and Integrity,
Asian Development Bank
112
The Asian Development Bank (ADB)
strongly believes that weak governance
and corruption hurt the poor most.
Despite robust economic growth in Asia
and the Pacific over recent years, the
region remains home to half the world’s
poor or those who live on $1.90 a day
or less. The misuse and redirection of
development funds from their intended
purpose will significantly impact ADB’s
ability to deliver its mandate of a
poverty-free region.
ADB has a long history of fighting
corruption. As early as 1998, it had
developed an anticorruption policy
with three objectives: (i) supporting
competitive markets and efficient and
transparent public administration; (ii)
bolstering anticorruption efforts and
quality of dialogue with developing
member countries; and, (iii) ensuring
that ADB projects and staff adhere
to the highest ethical standards.
To meet the third objective, in
2009 ADB established the Office
of Anticorruption and Integrity (OAI,
replacing a previous integrity unit that
had been in place since 1998. OAI’s
mandate is underpinned by ADB’s zero
tolerance for corruption. It is aligned with
ADB’s broader commitment to combat