MANILA -- Economic growth is a must but not the end-all in eliminating poverty and the Asian Development Bank is now determined to get to the very heart of the problem, ADB President Tadao Chino says.
"There is no doubt that economic growth can reduce poverty. . . . But economic growth alone is not sufficient," Chino said during a recent interview here.
Despite the remarkable economic development in Asia during the past few decades, the number of poor people has not been decreasing fast enough, he said, noting that the region still has nearly 900 million people living below the poverty line compared to more than 1 billion 30 years ago.