WITNESS TO DEVELOPMENT

WITNESS TO DEVELOPMENT CAPTURES THE SPIRIT OF ASIA AND THE PACIFIC IN TRANSITION FROM POVERTY TO PLENTY AS VIEWED THROUGH THE LENS OF RENOWNED PHOTOGRAPHERS FROM ACROSS THE REGION. EACH PHOTOGRAPHER CONVEYS A CONTEMPORARY NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT STORY THROUGH A COLLECTION OF IMAGES.

AFGHANISTAN

“AFTER THREE DECADES OF WAR, PEOPLE WERE VERY POOR. THE CITIES WERE ALL DESTROYED. THERE WERE NO SOCIAL FACILITIES, NO HOSPITALS, NO TELECOMMUNICATIONS, NO POWER, NO TRANSPORT OR AGRICULTURAL SYSTEM. BUT NOW WE HAVE HOSPITALS EVEN IN VERY REMOTE AREAS OF THE COUNTRY. THERE ARE NEW ROADS, TRAFFIC LIGHTS, CARS, BUILDINGS, NEW SHOPPING MALLS, ROAD LIGHTS EQUIPPED WITH SOLAR PANELS. THERE HAS BEEN A REVOLUTION OF DEVELOPMENT IN THE COUNTRY.” - JAWAD JALALI

IMPROVED ACCESS - Health workers from different parts of Afghanistan attend a vaccination training class at the main hospital in Bamyan. Access to the hospital is now faster because of the rehabilitated Bamyan-Yakawlang road.

MODERN CONVENIENCES - Cold storage facilities for potatoes in Bamyan have provided extra income for many families, allowing them to purchase solar panels to bring light and modern communications into their homes.

GOOD JOBS AND EFFICIENT TRANSPORT - An Afghan worker hauls sacks of flour from a train in Mazar-e-Sharif. The railway and new roads allows cheap and rapid transport of oil, wood, flour, wheat, asphalt and building materials.

FIJI

“THE ROADS ARE MAKING A HUGE DIFFERENCE. PEOPLE SEE THE BENEFITS OF SENDING THEIR KIDS TO SCHOOL, AND NOW THEY SEND THEM BECAUSE THERE ARE DECENT ROADS AND BUSES. IT’S SOMETHING WE TAKE FOR GRANTED, YET IT’S A SIMPLE FACT OF LIFE THAT ROADS CONNECT PEOPLE IN MORE WAYS THAN WE CAN IMAGINE. THESE PHOTOS SHOW THAT FIJI IS DEVELOPING AND CAN NO LONGER BE STEREOTYPED AS A POOR, BACKWARD PACIFIC ISLAND.” – LUIS ASCUI

DOING BUSINESS - Small shops have sprung up along Kings Road in Fiji, and people are now making a better living. Before the road was improved, many residents grew crops for subsistence only.

OCEANS OF PROGRESS - The upgraded Suva port has helped Fiji manage its growing cargo traffic and made its economy more competitive.

QUALITY ENVIRONMENT - Families play in the clean waters near Suva, Fiji. Untreated sewage flowing into the sea is now a thing of the past.

INDIA

“IN MANY AREAS THERE’S A NEW SENSE OF OPTIMISM: MANY OF THOSE WHO WERE PLANNING TO LEAVE ARE STAYING BECAUSE THEY CAN NOW EARN A LIVING AND GET THEIR CHILDREN EDUCATED. THE EMBANKMENT PROJECTS HAVE ALSO BENEFITTED AND PROTECTED THE ENVIRONMENT AND WILDLIFE.” – RAKESH SAHAI

ENLIGHTENING CONVERSATIONS - Residents of Sonsa Village in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, learn about the benefits of solar energy.

FINDING THEIR WAY - Rural roads have improved access for many people to school, work, markets, and health care facilities in India.

MODERN CLASSROOMS - Students at the Laitumkhrah Assamese Senior Secondary School in Shillong, Meghalaya, now have access to improved laboratories, libraries and computers.

People's Republic of China

“THIS ADB ASSIGNMENT, WHERE I FOCUSED ON ENVIRONMENTAL PROJECTS, REALLY SHOWED ME THE CONSTANT CHANGES AND PROGRESS IN SOCIETY. A MONTH OF SHOOTING HAS CONVINCED ME THAT EACH ADB-FUNDED PROJECT IS INSTRUMENTAL IN ADDRESSING ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES AND IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF PEOPLE’S LIFE.” – LU GUANG

WASTE NOT - The China Everbright International waste-to-energy plant in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, aims to treat about 7,300 tons of waste a day, generating around 1,240 gigawatt-hours of electricity a year by 2016.

SUSTAINABLE AQUACULTURE - Workers from Haiyuan Industria are harvesting short necked clams in a pond in Putian city, Fujian province. The company is a proponent of vertically-integrated aquaculture which helps clean the pond water, creating ideal conditions for the growth of shrimp, crab and clams.

COOKING FOR THE ENVIRONMENT - Methane gas captured from coal mines is used to cook food at the Yangguang Hotel in Jincheng City, Shanxi Province. Methane contributes to global warming if released into the atmosphere.