The Asian Development Bank closed its 35th annual meeting Sunday, painting a guardedly optimistic picture of the regional economy and vowing to help rebuild war-ravaged Afghanistan.
Delegates to the three-day conference in Shanghai also underlined the importance of the Manila-based ADB's "single, overarching goal" of making the Asia-Pacific region free of poverty.
On the Asian economy, they welcomed the brightening regional outlook, primarily stemming from the resurgent U.S. economy. They also renewed their determination to accelerate domestic reform.
In his closing remarks, ADB President Tadao Chino said the participants "noted that the world economy was in a modest recovery from the synchronized slowdown of 2001, and the regional economy is showing resilience."