Contributor(s): Masatsugu Asakawa | Asia has successfully transitioned from a low-income agrarian region in the 1960s to a global manufacturing powerhouse today, driving growth around the world. COVID-19 is threatening to turn back the clock on some of that progress. Policy makers in the region are striving to regain and sustain growth momentum. The Asian Development Bank stands ready to help its developing members toward the path of resilient and sustainable recovery through deeper regional cooperation, inclusive human resource development, green infrastructure, accelerated digitalization, and stronger domestic resource mobilization. Meet our speaker and chair Masatsugu Asakawa is the President of the Asian Development Bank (@adb_hq) and the Chairperson of ADB’s Board of Directors. He was elected President by ADB’s Board of Governors and assumed office on 17 January 2020. Prior to joining ADB, he served as Special Advisor to Japan’s Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and has a close-to-four decades’ career at the Ministry of Finance with diverse professional experiences that cut across both domestic and international fronts. Hyun Bang Shin (@urbancommune) is Professor of Geography and Urban Studies, Department of Geography and Environment, and Director of the Saw Swee Hock Southeast Asia Centre at LSE. More about this event The Saw Swee Hock Southeast Asia Centre (@LSESEAC) is a multidisciplinary Research Centre of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). It develops and fosters academic and policy-oriented research, drawing on a rich network of experts across disciplines at LSE and beyond, while serving as a globally recognised hub for promoting dialogue and engagement with Southeast Asia and the world.