President Emomali Rahmon today received Mr. Takehiko Nakao, President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

In the course of the talks, President Rahmon called the Asian Development Bank one of the reliable partners of Tajikistan and stressed that since 1998, ADB has provided about 1.6 billion U.S. dollars to support development of Tajikistan’s economy, according to the Tajik president’s official website. 

Tajik leader reportedly appreciated ADB’s financial support for enhancement of Tajikistan’s energy, transportation and education sectors as well as improvement of the country’s customs service and prevention and mitigation of natural disasters in Tajikistan.  

Rahmon and Nakao also discussed issues related to collaboration on implementation of Tajikistan's National Development Strategy for the Period up to 2030.  

They expressed confidence that collaboration between Tajikistan and ADB in providing food security in Tajikistan and developing private sector of Tajikistan’s economy would be brought to a new level, the website says.

Recall, Mr. Nakao arrived in Dushanbe on October 25 to hold talks with Tajik state officials and attend the 16th Ministerial Conference of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) that will take place here on October 27. 

While in Tajikistan, ADB president is also expected to visit ADB-sponsored projects. 

Mr. Nakao was first elected as President by the Board of Governors on 28 April 2013 to serve the 3 and a half years remaining of the term of his predecessor, Haruhiko Kuroda. Mr. Nakao is the ninth President of ADB. He was the sole nominee after ADB’s Governors were invited from 31 May to 30 June 2016 to make nominations for the organization’s presidency.  On August 5, 2016, the Asian Development Bank Board of Governors unanimously reelected Takehiko Nakao as President of ADB for a further 5 years.

Prior to joining ADB in 2013, Mr. Nakao was a senior official in the Ministry of Finance, Japan, where he gained extensive experience in international finance and development.  Mr. Nakao also taught international finance as a Visiting Professor at the University of Tokyo in 2010 and 2011.

Born in 1956, Mr. Nakao holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of Tokyo and a M.B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley.

Tajikistan joined the Asian Development Bank in 1998.  ADB operations in Tajikistan focus on improved infrastructure, investment climate reforms, and improved food security.