What to do with $40 billion?
That question is central to this week’s Asia and the Pacific Food Systems Forum hosted by the Asian Development Bank. Last May, ADB announced it would channel that amount into transforming food systems by 2030 — a relatively new front for the organization, which has typically focused its work on infrastructure.
While over $14 billion has already been allocated, ADB and food systems experts are spending part of the four-day forum, which opened on Monday in Manila, discussing how the rest can make the biggest impact. In his opening remarks on Tuesday, ADB President Masato Kanda said food systems in the region are at a “turning point.”