Frankfurt: Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Takehiko Nakao has said strong GDP expansion in some of the countries, including India, is expected to push up Asia’s economic growth rate to 5.7 per cent in 2016.

“Despite slowdown in China, Asia is going to witness a growth rate of 5.7 per cent this year and we expect same level of growth next year,” he said on the opening day of 49th ADB annual meet here.

India will be represented by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das. “Asia as a whole has been growing in this decade even after the global financial crisis… India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar and Bangladesh are keeping very robust growth. So, I am very positive about Asian economic conditions,” he said. Nakao further said Asia is still young and has a growing population and its future is bright. “In many countries, the population remains young and is growing. This will bring large demographic dividends if we can create quality jobs. The middle class is expanding providing a basis for strong consumption,” he said. There is still much scope to grow to catch up with advanced economies, he stressed. He further said Asian countries must maintain sound macroeconomic policies, invest more in infrastructure, human capital and technology, develop efficient financial markets and improve business climate. — PTI