19 March 2006, 3 to 7 PM, Sahitya Academy Hall, Thrissur
Peoples Forum Against ADB Invites You to
WHAT : Kerala State Consultation on: Mobilising against the Asian Development Bank’s Annual Governors’ Meet
Thrissur on 19 March 2006 , VENUE : Kerala Sahitya Academy Auditorium, Thrissur at 3pm-7pm.
13 March 2006,
Dear Friend:
The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) 39th Annual Governors’ Meeting (AGM) is scheduled for 3-6 May 2006 in Hyderabad, India.
Since 2000, peoples’ movements, communities affected by the ADB projects, academics, researchers, activists, labour unions and NGOs have come together at the venues of these AGMs to hold parallel events on the impacts of ADB loans and to oppose and protest the institution and its brand of development policy. From Thailand to Turkey, the ADB Governors have faced mass mobilisations by people affected by its policies.
India is a prominent member of the ADB. After China, India is the largest borrower from the Bank. Finance Minister, P Chidambaram, is the Chair of the Board of Governors of the ADB.
Projects financed by the ADB range from energy and power sector restructuring to flood control, irrigation, water policy reform, urban development, highways, administrative and fiscal reforms. The projects and programmes have been undertaken across the country, from Jammu & Kashmir, Uttaranchal, West Bengal and the North East, to Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Kerala, Rajasthan, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
The policy reforms and conditionalities that ADB demands from the Governments, include, adopting laws and regulations that favour private sector involvement in key sectors, market-friendly restructuring and reforms in sectors for which ADB support is being sought, corporatisation and privatisation of public enterprises and utilities, creating a flexible labour force, commercialization of agricultural production and trade and investment liberalisation.
The ADB works in tandem with other institutions such as the World Bank and World Trade Organisation to ensure that markets function effectively with minimal government intervention and regulations are amended for the entry of corporate players in sectors such as water, electricity and other key public sectors.
Kerala is a focal state of the ADB. There are active campaigns against the ADB loan to Kerala. It is also an important site of struggle against neo-liberalism and corporate led globalisation.
This meeting will aim to bring together activists to jointly strategise on actions towards the AGM. We will also explore possibilities of linking ongoing campaigns in Kerala towards the activities planned at the Peoples Forum against the ADB in May 2006.
The May 2006 Hyderabad AGM offers an opportunity for movements, people’s organisations, community groups, labour unions and activists to come together and raise a collective and unified voice against neo-liberalism and its instruments – the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank and the World Trade Organisation.
We look forward to your participation at this meeting.
Thank you.
In solidarity
Anivar Aravind (GAIA),
Sumesh Mangalassery (Kabani),
Souparna Lahiri (Peoples Forum against the ADB) and
Benny Kuruvilla (Focus on the Global South)
Agenda
1) Introduction to the consultation
2) Overview of ADB in India
3 What is the ADB AGM and why is it important to mobilise against it?
4) ADB in India -the Kerala experience. -the Karnataka experience
5) Peoples Forum against ADB activities during the AGM and what can groups in Kerala do to contribute to this process.
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Anivar Aravind
GAIA (Global Alternate Information Applications)
Perngavu.P.O
Thrissur-680018
Ph. 9895803545