File No.
Drafted by- Typed by- Dace-
23.
DRAFT
CONFIDENTIAL
Page...
13
It
has
become
something
of
cliche to say that the next century will
be
the Asian or the Pacific century. 1 do
not doubt that this will be true. But we
must hot allow this longer term prospect
to produce a talse sense of ease. The
poor of Asia are understandably impatient
for progress now. They look to their
governments and to institutions like the
ADB to help provide it.
24.
It is this
The ADB combines its technical
competence with vision a vision of what
Asia can achieve. Both are essential for
the success of your work.
vision which has helped to broaden our
understanding of the many dimensions of
development.
development goes beyond simply striving
for economic growth at the cxpense of
people's traditional way of life or their
environment.
We now understand that
25.
I hope that in the coming few
days you will lay the foundations of the
ADB's
century.
mission over the next quarter of a
This is a mission which you
CONFIDENTIAL