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Asian Development Bank president Takehiko Nakao. Credit: ADB

Nakao, who was first elected in April 2013 to serve the remaining three and a half years of his predecessor Haruhiko Kuroda’s term, will hope to secure another five years in the post when the current term ends in November.

If re-elected, Nakao said he would “continue to make utmost efforts to tackle the remaining and new challenges of our developing member countries”.

His include improving the lot of the 450 million people still living in extreme poverty in the region, enhancing gender equality, developing the private sector, tackling climate change and working towards more effective regional integration.

The ADB said that under Nakao’s leadership, its lending capacity has increased, its operations have scaled up, and its loan and grant approvals reached a record $16.3bn.

The bank has also undertaken a number of institutional reforms including streamlining procurement and other processes.

Previously, Nakao worked in the Japanese embassy in the US, at the International Monetary Fund and held senior positions in Japan’s Ministry of Finance.

His current term comes to an end on 23 November, after which a new president will be elected by the bank’s board of governors.