On 15–16 September, CCSD’s NGO and Civil Society Center, in collaboration with the Office of Safeguards, hosted civil society organizations (CSOs) from across Asia and the Pacific for the inaugural CSO Insights: A Listening and Dialogue Forum in Manila, Philippines. 

The event – which builds on ADB's engagement with CSOs during the Civil Society Program at ADB’s Annual Meetings – brought together over 250 CSO representatives, both in-person and online. Sessions facilitated open dialogue on ADB's sectoral and thematic work. 

‘Nothing about us without us’

To open the Listening Forum, civil society leaders Sharmin Khan, legal consultant from the International Center for Nonprofit Law in Bangladesh, and Melina Tuiravakai, executive member of the Cook Islands Indigenous Women’s CSO Au Vaine, delivered messages emphasizing their expectations from this forum and the importance of early and meaningful engagement with CSOs and communities under the principle “Nothing about us without us.”

Benjamin Graham, CCSD Director for Fragility and Engagement, welcomed participants and reaffirmed ADB’s commitment to enhancing civil society engagement. He highlighted the forum’s importance as a learning event – on one hand, enabling ADB to understand CSO perspectives on key development issues across different sectors and thematic areas, and on the other hand, providing CSOs with insights into ADB’s strategic priorities and areas for collaboration.

Elaborating on ADB’s efforts to enhance its engagement with civil society, Haidy Ear-Dupuy, NGOC Unit Head, provided an overview of ADB’s Civil Society Approach: An Operational Approach to Enhanced Engagement, 2025–2030, underlining its three pillars: (i) policy, country, and project engagement; (ii) knowledge and dialogue; and (iii) accountability and transparency.

OSFG Senior Safeguards Specialist Lisa Kircher discussed ADB’s Environmental and Social Framework, highlighting the inclusion of ESS 10 on stakeholder engagement and information disclosure that support meaningful consultation with communities, affected people, and civil society in ADB-financed projects.  

Highlighting the forum, CCSD DG Eugenue Zhukov, SD2 DG Cleo Kawawaki, Senior Director-Energy Priyantha Wijayatunga, CCSD Director for Fragility and Engagement Benjamin Graham, and OSFG Director for Safeguards Beatrice Gomez – joined a roundtable discussion with civil society leaders to discuss and respond to CSO recommendations on ADB’s policy, program, and projects.

A call for genuine, meaningful engagement

Across 14 plenary and deep-dive sessions, CSOs shared insights on improving ADB’s development effectiveness. Participants also offered recommendations for ADB to enhance the development space, support broad stakeholder engagement in its policy and operations work, and strengthen social and environmental safeguards across its initiatives in the region. 

A central and recurring theme across the two-day forum was the call from CSOs for genuine and meaningful engagement. This means CSOs want to be involved at the earliest stages of a project's life cycle, from the initial concept and design. Participants also emphasized the need for communication that is localized and easy to understand and called on ADB to close the feedback loop by letting them know how their inputs are used. 

The forum's discussions consistently stressed that effective development must be people-centered. This involves fostering community-led innovations, promoting inclusivity for vulnerable groups, and ensuring policy coherence across ADB sectors. 

Building trust, collaboration, and shared responsibility

Discussions across various sessions reaffirmed the role of CSOs as essential partners in promoting accountability and transparency. Participants underscored their critical role as independent, third-party monitors, and in holding governments accountable for project quality and public funds. 

To empower CSOs for these roles, the need for a dedicated fund for CSOs and simplified funding processes, building capacity in engaging with ADB, and the protection of civic space were continually highlighted throughout the event.

Across 14 sessions, CSOs provided feedback on key development areas, including: 

• Agriculture, food, nature, and rural development; 

• Digital innovation for disability inclusion; 

• Urban renewal and inclusive resettlement planning;

• Promoting an enabling environment for civil society

• Engagement with Indigenous Peoples; 

• Community-led solutions in the triple nexus+ (humanitarian-peace-development-climate change);

• Third-party project monitoring; 

• Addressing the triple planetary crisis;

• Updating ADB’s gender and development policy; 

• ADB’s just transition initiatives; and 

• Implementation of the new Environmental and Social Framework.

Sessions were organized by ADB sector and thematic groups and key CSO partners, including Armavir Development Center of Armenia, Asia Disaster Reduction and Response Network, Caucus of Development NGO Networks of the Philippines, the Indigenous Peoples Advisory Group, International Center for Not-for-Profit Law, International Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, NGO Forum on ADB, and Oxfam Pilipinas. 

The forum concluded with an interactive workshop that explored how CSOs can effectively support ADB operations – including the innovations CSOs bring to the table – as well as considerations for ADB when designing and implementing projects. Summaries of the respective sector and thematic recommendations will be shared with ADB operations.