A. Opening Session

• The opening session is held in the morning of the first official day of the Annual Meeting (i.e., day 3) and is expected to conclude at about 12 noon. It is a formal occasion where the Chair, Guest of Honor, and ADB President address all Annual Meeting participants. Simultaneous interpretation is provided. The host country may put on a short (i.e., 12–15 minutes) cultural event; however, this is optional. The cultural presentation should be screened for the use of national stereotypes or other sensitive content. Any cultural event should be presented either at the start or at the end of the opening session. The program may include videos produced by ADB and the host country. The ADB corporate video highlights ADB’s development work, while the host country video generally focuses on the development of the host country and may also showcase the country as an investment and tourism destination. The videos are generally shown as participants are taking their seats, before the official program. This is followed by speeches by the Chair, the Guest of Honor, and ADB President. The ADB President's speech usually lasts about 20 minutes, since it is his opportunity to address the Board of Governors and other ADB stakeholders. The speeches of the Chair and Guest of Honor are generally shorter -- usually 10-15 minutes. A master of ceremonies introduces the speakers and cultural event, if any.
   The cultural presentation should be screened for the use of national stereotypes or other sensitive content. Any cultural event should be presented either at the start or at the end of the opening session.
• Formal invitations to registered participants are not required. About 400 seats are normally allocated for host country guests, and an additional 150 for diplomatic representatives of ADB members. Sample seating arrangement
• About 2,000 persons are expected to attend the opening session. The seating on the stage and elsewhere in the venue is decided when the arrangements for the opening session are finalized. However, the Chair of the Board, ADB President, and Secretary are usually seated in the front row with the Guest of Honor. The exact seating requirements depend on the configuration of the venue and the number of persons in each delegation. All seating areas in the audience must be clearly designated by free-standing signs.
• The event is webcast live, and the host country will supply a suitable mixed camera feed to be sent for webcast streaming. It is usually telecast by the host country. The event will also be recorded for both audio and video. Video clips and speeches are to be uploaded on to the ADB website. Refer to 11.2. Conference Technology - Audio-Visual and Technical System Section F for more details.
• The host country is expected to provide, manage and run all audio-visual and production requirements for the opening session. A general list of AV requirements for this session is listed in Chapter 11. Information and Conference Technology – technical rider section of this guide. ADB provides a technical director who will support the host country production team during the President’s speech rehearsals and speech at the Opening Session. A dedicated show caller and all technical crew and operators are to be supplied by the host country.
• Photograph Session for the Guest of Honor, Heads of Delegations, and ADB Management. Consideration may be given to staging an official photograph of the Guest of Honor, Heads of Delegation, and ADB Management. See samples of photograph sessions with Guests of Honor in Appendix 24. The photograph showing the dimensions of the risers to be used for the photograph is in Appendix 25. Only ADB and host country photographers are allowed to take the initial first shots. Opening the session to media photographers can be restricted depending on logistics and security issues that may arise.

Example Speaker/AV run order

B. Business Session

1. The Governors' formal business at the Annual Meeting is conducted in the business session.
2. At the end of each Annual Meeting, the Board of Governors elects one of its Governors to be Chair and two other Governors to be Vice-Chairs, who will serve in their respective positions until the end of the next Annual Meeting. The Procedures Committee considers nominations for the Chair and recommends one Governor to the Board of Governors. It has been the practice for the Governors to make only one nomination; it is usually the Governor of the member country that will host the next Annual Meeting.
3. The Chair of the Procedures Committee is appointed by the Board of Governors on the recommendation of the outgoing Procedures Committee, and he or she is usually the Chair of the Board of Governors. Likewise, the committee also recommends Governors for election as Vice-Chairs. It has been the practice to elect the Vice-Chairs from among the regional members if the Chair is expected to be from outside of the region. If the Chair is expected to be from the region, one of the nominated Vice-Chairs is from outside of the region.
4. The Chair of the Board of Governors (and usually of the Procedures Committee) chairs the Procedures Committee meeting, if there is one. He or she also chairs the opening session and the business session according to a co-chairing schedule. If the Chair is unavailable, one of the two Vice-Chairs chairs the meeting on his or her behalf. Normally, both Vice-Chairs get the chance to assist the Chair in the conduct of the meeting by taking the chair for a part of the proceedings.
5. A co-chairing schedule, indicating the detailed meeting schedule of the Chair and Vice-Chairs, is drawn up in advance of the Annual Meeting by the Business Proceedings Unit (BPU). This is presented to the Chair for approval. See a sample co-chairing schedule below. A procedure for chairing and co-chairing will be defined by BPU for the business session, considering also emergency situations such as when: (a) the Chair will not be able to attend the session; (b) both Chair and Vice-Chair will not be available for business session and other scenarios.

   5 May	Business Session
   2:00 – 3:30 p.m.	Chair (Korea)
   3:30 – 4:30 p.m.	Vice-Chair (Indonesia)
   4:30 – 5:30 p.m.	Vice-Chair (Luxembourg)

6. Briefing session by the Secretary for Chair and Vice-Chairs. A briefing session is held in the office of the Chair, where the Secretary briefs the Chair and Vice-Chairs on the details of business proceedings, including scripts of meetings, co-chairing schedule, and any sensitive issues that may arise during the course of the meeting. Copies of the documents are given to the Chair and Vice- Chairs, and their respective roles are explained to them.
7. Business session. Business session gives the Board of Governors an opportunity to adopt resolutions presented to it by the Procedures Committee and to take note of other documents; approve the provisional schedule of meetings, provisions relating to conduct of meeting, and the agenda; as well as give the Governors the chance to make statements.
8. Board of Governors resolutions that are usually adopted at the Annual Meeting include:
   • financial statements and independent auditors' reports
   • allocation of net income
   • the place and date of a future Annual Meeting (or a future series of meetings)
9. Other formal actions, mostly administrative, are required regular business at an Annual Meeting, including:
   • noting of the annual report
   • noting of the annual administrative budget
   • information on the resources of ADB
   • review of rules and regulations adopted by the Board of Directors
   • election of officers for the next Annual Meeting (i.e., Chair, Vice-Chairs, and members of the Procedures Committee)
10. Business session is webcast live.
11. At the start of the business session, the Chair explains how the meeting will be conducted and introduces some of the agenda items. He or she then calls one Governor at a time to deliver his or her statement. There are usually no unannounced interventions or discussions. The Governors conclude their statements and consider the remaining items on the agenda. The Chair-elect (usually the Governor of the next host country) gives a short welcome statement, followed by the closing remarks of the ADB President and the Chair. Just before the conclusion of the business session, the ADB President presents gifts of appreciation (sets of gavel and block) to the Chair and Vice Chairs. The Chair passes on the symbolic baton to the Chair-elect in a brief ceremony. After the brief ceremony, the Chair officially closes the Annual Meeting.
12. The scripts of the Chair and Vice-Chairs are prepared by ADB in advance of the Annual Meeting, based on the co-chairing schedule approved by the Chair.
13. The detailed room, technical, and logistical requirements are in Chapter 19. Meeting Setups. It is important that the room assigned for the Business Session is ready for a technical dry-run at least 1 day before the Business Session. Scaled drawings of the setup, furniture specifications are to be produced by the host country or appointed PCO in partnership with the AV supplier and shared with all parties involved well in advance for review/approval. A full technical crew may be required to be on standby for the dry run.
14. Governors' statements. Governors are informed in advance to limit the length of their oral statements to give all Governors the opportunity to speak while enabling the business session to be concluded on time. Governors can submit for the record longer texts than those delivered or even the entire text without delivery.
15. Governors delivering oral statements are requested to limit themselves to 3 minutes, after which they are given a 1-minute grace period to enable them to conclude their statements appropriately. A control system that electronically monitors the speaking time of each Governor is used and is provided by ADB. The Chair is able to monitor the light for each speaker. Joint statements are encouraged, and those giving joint statements are given 5 minutes as well as higher priority in the speaking order.
16. The order of speakers and meeting agenda is established in advance by ADB. Governors desiring to speak are generally recognized in the established order of speaking. The speaking slot of a Vice-Chair who is scheduled to chair a session is usually set at a time when he or she is not chairing the meeting. The final list of speakers for each session is posted on a board outside the venue. Copies are also placed at the head table.
17. The working language for the business session is English as stipulated by Section 10 of the Rules of Procedure of the Board of Governors. Facilities for simultaneous interpretation must be available for the business session, and headsets are placed in front of each Governor/HOD and at the head table. The host country provides the facilities and equipment for simultaneous translation. Members wishing to use the facilities are required to provide their own interpreters at their own cost.
18. Only the interpreters may receive Governors' statements before they are delivered.
19. Once a Governor has delivered his or her statement, a member of the ADB Secretariat uses some form of electronic communication (e.g., the live webcast, instant messaging, or Skype) to inform staff at ADB headquarters that the statement may now be uploaded on to the ADB website. A fast, and above all, reliable internet link between the Annual Meeting site and ADB headquarters is therefore essential. The venue internet will be reviewed by the ADB IT team on the IT/Technical mission and at this mission, it is established as to whether backup internet is required.
20. Delegates may read Governors' statements on the ADB website and download them if needed. Video recordings of the statements are uploaded to be viewed on demand on the ADB website within hours from the event. To reduce paper consumption, hard copies of statements are not distributed at the Annual Meeting venue.

C. Governors' Plenary

The Governors’ Plenary, introduced in 2012, provides an opportunity for Governors to engage with their peers in a closed door, free-flowing dialogue on a topic selected by the President. If an external speaker is involved, he/she is selected by ADB, but proposes the topic for discussion. The speaker, who is selected by ADB, provides proposals on the topic of the sessions. Participation is limited to ADB Governors/Heads of Delegation and ADB President, all seated in the main plenary. Alternate Governors, ADB Board of Directors and ADB Senior Management may attend as observers. The session is not open to members of the press. The session may also be facilitated/moderated by an ADB senior staff or the Chair of the Board of Governors. The host country provides the venue, furniture and equipment.

D. Press Conference

President's Press Conference. The ADB President gives an opening press conference on topical issues, to set the agenda for the Annual Meeting. Attendance at the press conference is confined only to the media. Around 200-250 journalists are expected to attend. The press conference is usually held on the first day of the 4-day Annual Meeting. Venue setup and seating arrangements for the press conference are provided in Chapter 19. Meeting Setups. The press conference is webcast live. Facilities for simultaneous interpretation are also required.

E. Official Meetings

• Official meetings. Many other official meetings also take place during the Annual Meeting. Detailed room, technical, and logistical arrangements are in Chapter 19, Meeting Setups. The host country provides the venues, equipment, and setups for these meetings. ADB provides information on the detailed requirements for each meeting. The agenda for these meetings is set by the organizers of the meetings. ADB advises host country officials if they are expected to attend any of the official meetings.
• The following table summarizes the categories of other meetings, responsible offices or persons, the roles and responsibilities of ADB and the host country , preferred venues, and catering requirements.