Review of ADB's Engagement with CSOs

Project Description:

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has been engaging with Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) since the late 1980s, and has been expanding engagement to effectively encompass the diverse spectrum of non-government actors that are part of the development cooperation constellation in and across ADB member countries. ADB’s commitment to strengthen CSO engagement has become further explicit and intentional in recent years. This is evidenced in ADB’s Strategy 2030, which commits to increase civil society involvement in the design and implementation of ADB projects with a particular focus on operations that use grassroots/participatory approaches to target poor and vulnerable groups, mobilize women and young people, and monitor project activities and outputs. Strategy 2030 also mentions that ADB will seek civil society inputs and advice on the review of major ADB policies.

The Mangrove Collective was contracted by the NGO and Civil Society Centre (NGOC) of ADB to conduct and independent, external review of ADB's CSO engagement work over the past decade. The objective was to identify key accomplishments, and ADB's organisational strengths and weaknesses in engaging with civil society. The review also included an analysis of the current civil society landscape in Asia, the CSO engagement practices of other multilateral development banks (MDBs), and the degree of partnering alignment between ADB and CSOs.