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Climate-Resilient Connectivity for the Eastern Economic Corridor Project: The Intercity Motorway No. 7 (Extension to Link with U-Tapao International Airport)

The U-Tapao International Airport is the core infrastructure of the EEC and its expansion project is to be implemented via Public-Private Partnership modality. Land transport network connecting the U-Tapao International Airport in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) to the rest of the Pattaya City and country cannot adapt to changing needs as a result of the expansion plan of the airport due to the limitations of the existing land transport network to cope with traffic increase.




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SAFCO Sustainable Aviation Fuel Project




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Asialink Promoting Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Financing through Secured Vehicle Lending Project




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Building Resilience and Reducing Rural Poverty Project

The proposed project will expand a targeted, nutrition-sensitive conditional cash transfer (CCT) program to up to 30,000 poor households in areas with high rates of poverty, malnutrition, and climate risks, and make social protection systems more adaptive and shock-responsive. The CCT targets poor pregnant women and mothers of children under two as adequate nutrition is critical during the first 1,000 days of a child's life.




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Veyseloglu Modern Retail Expansion Project

The transaction involves a loan of up to $10,000,000 (or the local currency equivalent) to Araz Supermarket LLC (Araz) for the Veyseloglu Modern Retail Expansion Project in Azerbaijan, and technical assistance (TA) of $500,000 for the Building the Capacity of Smallholder Fruit and Vegetable Farmers for Climate-Resilient Farming.




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Asia-Pacific Trade Facilitation Report 2024: Promoting Sustainability and Resilience of Global Value Chains

This report examines the progress of trade facilitation in Asia and the Pacific, highlights recent trends in paperless trade, and evaluates the impact of trade facilitation initiatives on trade costs and overall trade.




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Blue Finance Development in Shandong Province, People’s Republic of China

This brief shows how mainstreaming blue finance hinges on developing a solid regulatory framework that drives investment toward bankable marine-based projects and analyzes how to expand the sector in the People’s Republic of China (PRC).




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Leveraging Lessons Learned from India’s Unified Payments Interface for Digital Transformation in Asia and the Pacific

This brief shows how India sparked a digital payments boom and boosted financial inclusion through the introduction of its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and outlines ways countries in the region can ramp up their own digital transformation.




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Strengthening Regional Cooperation and Integration through Economic Corridor Development: Proceedings of the 2023 Regional Cooperation and Integration Conference

This report shares insights on economic corridor development (ECD) from the 2023 Regional Cooperation and Integration (RCI) Conference, discussing how ECD can help diversify trade, cut costs, and support regional growth.




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Aid for Trade in Asia and the Pacific: Navigating Climate Policy Dynamics for Sustainable Trade Competitiveness

This report emphasizes that open and fair trade is essential for Asia and the Pacific’s transition to low-carbon economies and outlines the important role of Aid for Trade in this transition.




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Innovative Finance Approaches for Addressing River Basin Pollution: Combating Aquatic Biodiversity Loss in Southeast Asia

This report outlines the cascading environmental, social, and economic impacts of aquatic biodiversity loss in Southeast Asia and recommends ways to develop scalable projects that tackle river pollution and support sustainable development.




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Asian Development Outlook (ADO) July 2024: Steady Growth, Slowing Inflation

Asia and the Pacific’s developing economies are projected to grow 5.0% this year on the back of resilient domestic demand and strong export growth, particularly in the electronics sector.




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The Nexus of Peer-to-Peer Lending and Monetary Policy Transmission: Evidence from the People’s Republic of China

This paper examines how booms and busts in peer-to-peer (P2P) lending in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) affect monetary policy transmission to inflation and output.




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Integrated Services and Livelihood for Displaced People from Myanmar and Host Communities Improvement Project

The project will continue the support of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to Bangladesh in managing the influx of around one million displaced people from Myanmar (DPFM) since 2017. Now a protracted situation, the crisis is putting significant pressure on infrastructure and causing substantial challenges in terms of food, shelter, health, security, water, sanitation, and other services in the DPFM camps and host communities.




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Climate-smart Health Services System Enhancement Project

The project will be aligned with the following impacts: (i) modern public health service system ensuring well-being of all Thais in an effective, fair, sufficient, and sustainable manner developed; and (ii) UHC, including access to essential health care services, sustained. The outcome is: access to quality public hospital services by all in selected provinces improved.




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Almaty–Bishkek Economic Corridor Regional Improvement of Border Services Project

The project will build and equip 3 climate-resilient and energy-efficient border crossing points (BCP) between the Kyrgyz Republic and Kazakhstan on the Kyrgyz side of the border and a training center for the Kyrgyz Border Service (the project EA). The project with the total loan and grant financing of $37 Million will help facilitate trade and tourism between the Kyrgyz Republic and Kazakhstan and will contribute to the sustainable economic development along the Almaty-Bishkek Economic Corridor.




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Seismic Safety Improvement Program 3

The Republic of Armenia is located at the intersection of major tectonic faults, making it highly prone to seismic activity. The devastation of the 1988 Spitak earthquake claimed about 25,000 lives, including 6,000 school children; left 517,000 people homeless, destroyed 190 schools and many urban infrastructures; and incurred direct economic losses of $15 billion-$20 billion. The recent 7.8-magnitude earthquake in neighboring Trkiye and Syria in 2023 is a wake-up call for Armenia, posing a significant threat to the country. rkiye and Syria in 2023 is a wake-up call for Armenia, posing a significant threat to the country.




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Digital Agriculture Management for Improved Food Security Project




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Second Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Development Project (Phase 2)

The proposed SMEDP2-Phase 2 will consist of a $100 million concessional loan from ADB's ordinary capital resources and an attached technical assistance of $950,000 in aggregate from TASF-7 and Financial Sector Development Partnership Special Fund. It will finance the continuation and expansion of activities financed under the SMEDP2 project by increasing the number and size of commercially viable cottage, micro, small and medium enterprises (CMSMEs), as well as supporting employment in the CMSME sector.




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Resilient and Inclusive Road Sector Improvement Project II

The project aims to establish a high-quality, climate-resilient road network in northern Armenia, which will enhance trade, and stimulate inclusive economic growth. By improving the resilience and transport connectivity, the project seeks to promote a more balanced development across the region. Additionally, it focuses on enabling the development of future roads that are sustainable, safe, inclusive, and support low-carbon mobility, ensuring long-term benefits for the environment and communities.




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Third City Region Development Project




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Secondary Cities Environment Improvement Project (Dak Nong)

The project is aligned with the following impact: Livability of Gia Nghia city in Dak Nong province enhanced. The project will have the following outcome: access to urban environmental infrastructure and services in Gia Nghia improved. The project is expected to benefit approximately 68,215 residents through an improved environment and the establishment of public green spaces around the lakes, and approximately 20,810 residents additionally through access to networked sewer services by 2028.




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Climate Resilient Urban Services Project – Tham Luong Ben Cat

The project will support Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee and their government to finance sound wastewater and drainage system in the remaining catchments, thereby strengthening its foundation as the socioeconomic growth pole of southern Viet Nam. The impact of the project will be improved surface water quality and drainage capacity in HCMC. The outcome will be increased wastewater and drainage collection and treatment capacity in key catchments in HCMC.




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Supporting Renewable Energy Development

The project will support increased contributions of clean energy in Mongolia's energy mix while also supporting energy security, efficiency, and resilience. The project will finance the construction of a new 220 kilovolt (kV) transmission line to connect to the 90-megawatt (MW) Erdeneburen hydropower plant (HPP) to the existing grid network, which will increase supply in the Western Energy System (WES), eliminate costly and high-emission imports from the Russian Federation, and facilitate maximized utilization of wind and solar generating capacity.




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Climate-Resilient Water and Sanitation Services Project

Project objectives. The proposed project will assist the government in addressing climate vulnerabilities and enhancing public health and economic conditions by ensuring inclusive access to safe, reliable, climate-resilient, and sustainable WSS services for the residents of Andijan, Djizzak and Fergana provinces; and the Republic of Karakalpakstan. The project will help upgrade and expand the WSS infrastructure in the project regions and support regional suvtaminots in implementing transformational changes.




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Promoting Energy Exports Diversification Project

The TA is proposed to develop Bhutan's overall power dispatch options and strategies for domestic electricity consumption and international power trade. It will look into strategic views to maximize power export from various potential energy sources of hydropower, solar power, and wind power while meeting growing domestic electricity consumption.




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Northern China Agriculture and Food Ecosystem Low-Carbon and Climate Resilient Development Project

The proposed Northern China Agriculture and Food Ecosystem Net Zero Transformation Project (project) will support the PRC to achieve its climate commitment through catalyzing financing and strengthening institutional capacity for net zero transformation in agriculture and food ecosystem.




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GMS Cross-Border Livestock Health and Value Chains Improvement Project

The project will reduce trans-boundary animal diseases (TAD), food safety and zoonotic disease risks and strengthen livestock value chains and COVID-19 responses through investments in infrastructure, capacity building and policy support. The project will have the following outcome: health, value chains, and formal trade of livestock and livestock products improved. The project will be aligned with the following impact: GMS vision as a leading supplier of safe and environmentally friendly agriculture products realized.




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Resilient Amu Darya River Basin Sector Development Program

The proposed project will undertake a long-term and strategic approach to deliver climate adaptive solutions for water resources management in the Amu Darya River Basins in Uzbekistan. Predicted climate change impacts include increased temperatures, increased frequency and severity of extreme events such as floods and droughts, and a reduction of water availability and increased variability of water flows in the major river basins. Decreasing availability and increased water requirements by different sectors are leading to a growing seasonal and absolute supply-demand gap.




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Capacity Development for Portfolio Quality Improvement

The TA will provide implementation support to a series of ongoing and ensuing projects. It's objective will be to strengthen the quality of implementation of ongoing projects. The focus will be on procurement, contract management, DPP/TAPP approvals, project design and management.




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Evaluation of Wind Potential for Renewable Energy Development

The TA will focus on evaluating the wind potential of various site/s for government investment in wind energy. A feasibility analysis of viable wind sites will be carried out, which will inform the government on the scale of wind projects and how best to develop this potential. The TA will also fund the equipment for measuring wind speeds and directions to confirm site selection and build capacity for wind energy development in the EA.




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MFF: Green and Resilience Financing Facility Investment Program

The proposed program is a large-scale transformative and integrated initiative addressing the constraints. It aims to bridge the financing, capacity, institutional, and technical gaps in implementing the NAP and adaptation measures mentioned in the NDC and GRID while promoting mitigation, biodiversity, air pollution, and food security as co-benefits.




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The inside story of heroic efforts to save three bird species

The graft involved in trying to bring the peregrine falcon, Hawaiian crow and California condor back from the brink in the US makes for compelling reading in Feather Trails by Sophie Osborn




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Sea lion cameras record amazing predator's view of the ocean

Eight Australian sea lions were fitted with cameras and trackers to capture unprecedented insights into their behaviour and the marine habitats where they hunt




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A surprisingly wide range of bacteria live inside microwaves

Microwaves in homes, offices and laboratories have been found to host diverse microbiomes, highlighting the importance of regular cleaning




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The best livestream so far this year? A corpse flower slowly blooming

Forget videos by gamers or influencers. For a real online thrill, watch the world's biggest flower emerging in a former web designer's greenhouse, says Annalee Newitz




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We now know how kestrels stay perfectly still while hovering

Two nankeen kestrels have been filmed flying in a wind tunnel to learn how the raptors keep their heads in a fixed position under turbulent conditions




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Endangered skates saved from extinction by hatching in captivity

The Maugean skate (Zearaja maugeana) is only found in one habitat in Australia, which is under threat from human activity. Now the species has been saved from extinction by hatching in captivity




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An engrossing history of teeth shows their complex role in evolution

From birds and bats to horses and great apes, Bill Schutt's seriously fun history of teeth, Bite, explains their role in both shaping evolution and our understanding of it




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Stunning photos of life above and below water

See the incredible shots that have won this year's BMC Ecology and Evolution and BMC Zoology Image Competition




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A cheaper alternative to activated charcoal for your terrarium

Is it worth including activated charcoal in your terrarium’s potting mix? James Wong isn’t convinced by this pricey product




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David Attenborough's latest explores the lives of an orangutan family

The veteran presenter adds authority to Secret Lives of Orangutans, a film about a family of endangered orangutans in Sumatra. File this new entry in his vast oeuvre under lovable but lightweight




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Wild bees have found a surprising place to nest in cities

A survey found 66 species of insects making their homes in cobbled pavements on the streets of Berlin, and greater biodiversity near insect-friendly flower gardens




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Pregnant shark that disappeared may have been eaten by another shark

Tracking data from a pregnant porbeagle shark near Bermuda suggest it was eaten by a great white shark – a kind of predation that has never been seen before




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Even simple bacteria can anticipate the changing seasons

Cyanobacteria exposed to shorter days are better at surviving cold conditions, showing that even simple organisms can prepare for the arrival or summer and winter




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Stunningly preserved pterosaur fossils reveal how they soared

The largest pterosaurs, ancient reptiles that were the first vertebrates to master flight, may have mostly soared while smaller ones flapped their wings, a pattern that persists in today's birds




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Fish size themselves up in a mirror to decide if they can win a fight

Cleaner wrasse use their reflection to build a mental image of their body size, which they use to compare themselves to rivals before picking a fight




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Is life better as a dog? A philosopher investigates

What is it like to be a dog? And what can we learn from them? Mark Rowlands's take, in his book The Happiness of Dogs, is full of insights, finds Abigail Beall




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Cats have brain activity recorded with the help of crocheted hats

Custom-made wool caps have enabled scientists to record electroencephalograms in awake cats for the first time, which could help assess their pain levels




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Antidote to deadly pesticides boosts bee survival

Feeding bees edible bits of hydrogel increases their odds of surviving pesticide exposure by 30 per cent