The Asian Development Bank has been a key development player in Asia and the Pacific region. Over the last 59 years, the Bank invested in many projects across the region, some which have cost people’s rights in the name of regional development. Today, Asia and the Pacific is still reeling from multiple and intersecting crises, and while it seems like the Bank addresses these so-called development gaps, communities continue to bear the brunt of the

Across Asia and the Pacific, development challenges manifest differently, but remain interconnected. Countries are in a very deep – almost impossible to recover from – external debt. The cost to live is in an upward trend with the prices of basic services and necessities increasing while wages remain stagnant. Austerity measures are put in place as a false solution to economic woes. World politics are in chaos too – international law and order are disrespected

This piece is writtten by Jennifer Guste of the Council for People’s Development and Governance (CPDG), a member of Reality of Aid – Asia Pacific. On 2 September 2025, international reports documented President Marcos Jr.’s visit to Bulacan, where he grew visibly angry after inspecting flood-control projects under the watch of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) that were listed as completed but were either substandard or altogether missing. Just weeks earlier, on

Across social media platforms, countless videos show Palestinians appealing for food, aid, and basic necessities. Each post and livestream reveals a harsh reality — that the horrors of war are no longer distant; they unfold before us, right in our hands. This digital battleground exposes the truth behind Israel’s actions, unraveling the contradictions in its narrative that once went unquestioned. Yet even as global awareness grows and solidarity spreads, it remains clear: seeing is not

The Philippines is struck by an average of 20 tropical cyclones each year, with eight to nine making landfall. Nearly 70% occur between July and October, and at least five are destructive, according to the Asian Disaster Reduction Center. Located in the Pacific Ring of Fire, the country is also highly vulnerable to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, storm surges, landslides, floods, and droughts. These overlapping risks mean that year after year, Filipinos face deadly floods

This piece is written by Francesca Villanueva, an intern of Reality of Aid – Asia Pacific. I am a child of the Asia Pacific, raised in a region that has lived too long with the weight of crisis. We are used to storms and floods; to governments that promise and fail; to leaders who speak of development while siphoning the funds that are supposed to build our futures. But in these previous weeks, across Nepal,