Asian Development Bank President Haruhiko Kuroda on Wednesday said oil prices were now unsustainably high and asked the oil producers to invest more in exploration and refining sectors.
"Oil prices should stabilise. Prices should be at sustainable levels. Oil prices now are unsustainably high. Oil producers should invest more on exploration and increase refinery capacities," he said at a media conference in Hyderabad on Wednesday afternoon.
Replying to a question on global oil price rise, he said: "We hope regional economies would continue to grow well (despite the rise). The growth in the Asian region is expected to drop marginally from 7.4 per cent to 7.2 per cent. This is on the assumption that crude oil prices do not go up."
Kuroda said: "One of the main focus areas of ADB is to see that development does not happen at the expense of the environment. The ADB proposes to step up lending to around $1 billion per annum to develop green energy and to provide market incentives to those who facilitate clean energy development. In the past 15 years, we financed many green energy projects. Even $1 billion a year is not so great," he added.
"Many Asians are benefiting from the region's dynamic growth. The number of people in absolute poverty -- living on less than $1 a day-- is rapidly declining. But I have also seen how many others still live in the shadow of persistent poverty. This is a major challenge -- to ensure the poor are included in and benefit from economic growth," he observed.
"For this, there are a number of challenges. For instance, broad based growth can only be achieved if people have access to services like clean water and sanitation and the poor get education and jobs. Also, the greatest threat to private investment in many countries is the high risk arising from regulatory weaknesses, policy uncertainties and market distortions," he pointed out.
"We must improve governance and maintain our vigilance against corruption. This is a critical moment for Asia. How we respond to these challenges will shape the region's future," he added.
