2026 ADB President’s Innovation Awards

ADB's first institution-wide award for innovation.

TIMELINE

  • INITIAL APPLICATIONS

    28 Sep - 1 Nov, 2026

    Submit a concise initial application in one maturity track. Several contributors can co-edit before you submit.

    Deliverable: Minimum 4 compulsory questions answered on the application form. Open to all ADB teams. Several contributors can work on one submission asynchronously and submit when ready. Information sessions and application clinics run throughout the window.

    Who can apply:

    • All ADB departments and offices.
    • Sovereign and non-sovereign operations.
    • Operational and non-operational initiatives.
    • Cross-departmental and multisector initiatives — joint submissions are encouraged where the innovation crosses organizational boundaries.
    • Initiatives undertaken with developing member country counterparts or external partners.
    • Projects, programs, platforms, instruments, and institutional approaches.
    • Initiatives at the conceptual, pilot, validated, or scaling stage, subject to stage-appropriate evidence requirements.

    Note: ADB Staff member or team should serve as a lead applicant

  • ELIGIBILTY SCREENING

    2 - 4 November 2026

     

    The Innovation Management Team checks four eligibility gates before submissions reach the Committee. Applicants who do not pass receive an explanation.

  • SCORING

    5 - 11 November 2026

     

    A representative Shortlisting Committee reviews eligible submissions against an agreed rubric and recommend a shortlist. The assessment considers impact potential, demonstrated or expected performance, the innovation’s distinctiveness within ADB, and its potential for replication or scale.

  • FINALIST DOCUMENTATION

    12 - 20 November 2026

     

    Shortlisted teams submit fuller evidence and a scaling plan, which will be presented to the Committee.

    Shortlisted applicants will be invited to provide additional information proportionate to the maturity and nature of their innovation. This may include:

    • detailed results data and supporting evidence;
    • clarification of the innovation’s additionality;
    • evidence of client, user, DMC, or partner engagement;
    • a proposed 6- to 18-month validation, adoption, replication, or scaling plan;
    • resource requirements and available financing;
    • key dependencies and institutional barriers;
    • operational, legal, procurement, safeguards, integrity, data, cybersecurity, intellectual property, or reputational considerations;
    • measurable milestones and conditions for continuing, adapting, pivoting, or stopping; and
    • a short presentation or interview with the Shortlisting Committee or President (dependent upon availability).

  • AWARD

    9 December 2026

     

    The President selects the awardees. Announced at the Staff Appreciation event on December 9, 2026.


 

Assessment

The assessment framework will combine common criteria with evidence expectations appropriate to each maturity track. All eligible submissions will be assessed against the same core dimensions, but the nature and strength of evidence required will differ for emerging, piloted, and validated innovations.

The Shortlisting Committee will assess innovations against three overarching dimensions to determine the innovation’s strategic additionality for scalable outcomes:

  • Can this become something important? Could this innovation materially improve ADB's future development impact, institutional effectiveness, or strategic relevance? (Future Potential)
  • Has it actually demonstrated value? What evidence shows that the innovation is creating value or progressing toward meaningful outcomes? (Performance)
  • Why is this innovation special or additional? What is materially different about this approach, and what does it enable ADB to do that existing approaches cannot? (Unique Contribution)
 

 

Criterion

Assessment question

Weight

Future Potential

Problem relevance and validation

Is the problem significant, clearly defined, and supported by credible client, user, development, market, or operational evidence?

15%

Potential for wider application and impact

Is there a realistic pathway toward validation, adoption, replication, institutionalization, knowledge diffusion, or scale?

20%

Performance

Evidence and performance

Is the evidence credible, clearly presented, and proportionate to the innovation’s maturity?

15%

Responsible innovation and feasibility

Are the principal risks, dependencies, resource implications, and implementation requirements understood and manageable?

10%

Unique to ADB

Development or institutional value

Does the initiative improve, or credibly have the potential to improve, development outcomes, inclusion, resilience, sustainability, reach, client service, speed, cost, quality, or institutional effectiveness?

20%

Innovation additionality

What does the initiative enable ADB, its clients, or its partners to do materially differently or more effectively than existing approaches?

20%

 

Total

 

100%

Scores will provide the principal basis for shortlisting, but final deliberation may also consider the overall balance and learning value of the Awards portfolio. Portfolio balance should not override minimum quality standards or establish quotas for organizational units.

 

 

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