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Kanda wins unanimous reelection as ADB president for fresh five-year term

Published Sep 1, 2026 11:22 am
ADB President Masato Kanda and Pasig City Mayor Victor Ma. Regis Sotto at ADB’s International Anticorruption Day 2025. (Photo from ADB website)
ADB President Masato Kanda and Pasig City Mayor Victor Ma. Regis Sotto at ADB’s International Anticorruption Day 2025. (Photo from ADB website)

Asian Development Bank (ADB) president Masato Kanda has secured a full five-year term at the helm of the Manila-based multilateral lender after winning unanimous support from its member economies.

In a statement on Tuesday, Sept. 1, the ADB said members of its board of governors unanimously reelected Kanda in a recently concluded election, with his new term to begin on Nov. 24, 2026.

Kanda was first elected as the ADB’s 11th president on Nov. 27, 2024, and assumed office on Feb. 24, 2025, serving the remaining term of his predecessor, Masatsugu Asakawa.

“I am deeply honored by the trust our members have placed in me at this critical moment in our region’s history. New shocks are striking Asia and the Pacific, even before economies have recovered from the last, and the international order is under its greatest strain in generations,” Kanda said.

“The ADB must be the region’s anchor of stability. But stability cannot mean standing still. We must mobilize with speed and at the scale our members need, to protect people today while helping build a brighter future for the next generation,” Kanda added.

Since Kanda assumed office, the ADB has expanded its financial support to its developing member countries (DMCs) amid what it described as a period of overlapping crises.

In 2025, the ADB provided a record $44 billion in support, comprising more than $29 billion from its own resources and nearly $15 billion in cofinancing.

An amendment to the ADB’s charter also paved the way for a 50-percent increase in the lender’s annual financing capacity, allowing financing from its own resources to exceed $36 billion annually.

Before joining the ADB, Kanda served as special advisor to Japan’s prime minister and finance minister from 2024 to 2025.

He was also Japan’s vice-minister of finance for international affairs from 2021 to 2024 and represented the country in major international forums, including the Group of Seven (G7) and Group of Twenty (G20).

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