ADB Launches $70 Billion Asia-Pacific Energy and Digital Initiative

During the 59th annual meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) announced a $70 billion investment plan through 2035 to strengthen regional integration. The strategy centers on two primary components: the $50 billion Pan-Asia Power Grid Initiative, which seeks to integrate 20 gigawatts of renewable energy and 22,000 circuit-kilometers of transmission lines, and the $20 billion Asia-Pacific Digital Highway, aimed at expanding broadband access to 200 million people.

To support these efforts, the ADB is establishing a Center for AI Innovation and Development in Seoul, backed by a $20 million contribution from South Korea, and a regional coordination center for the digital highway in Tashkent. Additionally, the bank launched a Regional Connectivity Fund for Southeast Asia with support from Australia, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the European Union.

ADB President Masato Kanda emphasized that these integrated systems are essential to combat global fragmentation. In a parallel effort, the ADB and Japan launched the Action for Creating Energy Security for Long-term Resilience (ACCEL) initiative to provide liquidity to small and medium-sized enterprises and support renewable energy transitions. Other developments include a regional trade and green growth project involving nations such as Azerbaijan and Armenia, and a $12 billion cooperation program between the ADB and Uzbekistan following economic liberalization reforms led by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.