Asian Development Bank in the context of "Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank"

The Coral Triangle (CT) is a roughly triangular area in the tropical waters around Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste. This area contains at least 500 species of reef-building corals in each ecoregion. The Coral Triangle is located between the Pacific and Indian oceans and encompasses portions of two biogeographic regions: the Indonesian-Philippines Region, and the Far Southwestern Pacific Region. As one of eight major coral reef zones in the world, the Coral Triangle is recognized as a global centre of marine biodiversity and a global priority for conservation. Its biological resources make it a global hotspot of marine biodiversity. Known as the "Amazon of the seas" (by analogy to the Amazon rainforest in South America), it covers 5.7 million square kilometres (2,200,000 sq mi) of ocean waters. It contains more than 76% of the world's shallow-water reef-building coral species, 37% of its reef fish species, 50% of its razor clam species, six out of seven of the world's sea turtle species, and the world's largest mangrove forest. The epicenter of that coral diversity is found in the Bird's Head Seascape of Indonesian Papua, which hosts 574 species (95% of the Coral Triangle, and 72% of the world's total). In 2014, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) reported that the gross domestic product of the marine ecosystem in the Coral Triangle is roughly $1.2 trillion per year and provides food to over 120 million people. According to the Coral Triangle Knowledge Network, the region annually brings in about $3 billion in foreign exchange income from fisheries exports, and another $3 billion from coastal tourism revenues.

The World Wide Fund for Nature considers the region a top priority for marine conservation, and is addressing ecological threats to the region through its Coral Triangle Program, launched in 2007. The center of biodiversity in the Triangle is the Verde Island Passage in the Philippines. Coral reef area in the region to have been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site are Tubbataha Reef Natural Park in the Philippines and Raja Ampat UNESCO Global Geopark in Indonesia.

Deng Xiaoping's southern tour (Chinese: 邓小平南巡), or 1992 southern tour (九二南巡), or simply Nanxun (南巡) was the tour of Deng Xiaoping, the third paramount leader of China, in southern China, including in Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Guangzhou and Shanghai, from 18 January to 21 February 1992. The talks and remarks made by Deng during the tour resumed and reinforced the implementation of his "reform and opening up" program in mainland China, which had come to a halt after the military crackdown on 1989 Tiananmen Square protests ordered by Deng himself. After Tiananmen Square incident, there was a lack of belief in the Chinese Communist Party both at home and abroad. The US and EU both issued arms embargoes while the World Bank and Asian Development Bank stopped issuing loans to China. The 1992 Southern Tour is widely regarded as a critical point in the modern history of China, as it saved the Chinese economic reform as well as the capital market, and preserved societal stability. It not only preserved stability inside of China, but it was reassuring to foreign countries who had begun to invest large amounts of money into China.

During the southern tour, Deng emphasized to several military leaders of the People's Liberation Army including Yang Shangkun, Liu Huaqing and Yang Baibing, that "those who do not promote reform should be brought down from their leadership positions", forcing Jiang Zemin, then General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), to support and continue the Reforms and Opening-up program. He also wished that Guangdong province would catch up with the Four Asian Tigers in terms of economic development within 20 years. Some of the notable remarks and comments from Deng during the tour included "I don't care if the cat is black or white, so long as it catches mice" (cat theory), which was originally published by him in 1960s, and "development is of overriding importance (发展才是硬道理)" as well as "[the Shenzhen government] should be bolder in carrying out the Reforms and Opening-up, dare to make experiments and should not act as women with bound feet".

The economy of the Philippines is an emerging market, and considered as a newly industrialized country in the Asia-Pacific region. In 2025, the Philippine economy is estimated to be at ₱28.50 trillion ($497.5 billion), making it the world's 32nd largest by nominal GDP and 9th largest in Asia according to the International Monetary Fund.

The Philippine economy is a service-oriented economy, with relatively more modest contributions from the manufacturing and agriculture sectors. It has experienced significant economic growth and transformation in the past, posting one of the highest GDP growth rates in Asia. With an average annual growth rate of around 6 percent since 2010, the country has emerged as one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. The Philippines is a founding member of the United Nations, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, East Asia Summit and the World Trade Organization. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is headquartered in the Ortigas Center located in the city of Mandaluyong, Metro Manila.

The Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India (TAPI) Gas Pipeline, also known as Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline, is a natural gas pipeline being developed by the Galkynysh – TAPI Pipeline Company Limited with participation of the Asian Development Bank. The pipeline will transport natural gas from the Galkynysh Gas Field in Turkmenistan through Afghanistan into Pakistan and then to India.

The TAPI pipeline was completed on the Turkmenistan side in 2024. The project is currently expanding southbound in Herat Province of Afghanistan. Proponents of the project see it as a modern continuation of the Silk Road.

The Asian Highway Network (AH), also known as the Great Asian Highway, is a cooperative project among countries in Asia and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) to improve their connectivity via highway systems. It is one of the three pillars of the Asian Land Transport Infrastructure Development (ALTID) project, endorsed by the ESCAP commission at its 48th session in 1992, comprising Asian Highway, Trans-Asian Railway (TAR) and facilitation of land transport projects.

Agreements have been signed by 32 countries to allow the highway to cross the continent and also reach to Europe. Some of the countries taking part in the highway project are India (Act East policy), Sri Lanka, Pakistan, China, Iran, Japan, South Korea, Nepal and Bangladesh. Most of the funding comes from the larger, more advanced Asian nations such as China, South Korea and Singapore as well as international agencies such as the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).