Business
UPDATED: 11:07, March 21, 2006
Asian Development Bank to invest 10 billion dollars in water projects http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200603/21/eng20060321_252258.html
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will invest 10 billion U.S. dollars in water and sanitation projects in Asia over the next four years, ADB Vice President Geert Van der Linden said on Monday.
Linden told a press conference that the projects intend to provide clean water to 200 million Asians and improve the irrigation and drainage systems that benefit a further 40 million people.
Linden is in Mexico to attend the fourth World Water Forum, which began in Mexico City on Thursday. He said that in Asia some 678 million people lack access to clean, reliable water and 1.9 billion lack sanitation services. The bank will allocate the bulk of its investment to the countries including India, Indonesia, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The ADB was founded in 1966, and now has 64 members. It lent 5.8 billion dollars directly last year, and provided nearly 199 million worth of technical assistance.
Source: Xinhua
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