Asian Development Bank (ADB) Board of Directors has approved a 5-million-U.S.-dollar grant to help Central and West Asia address the impacts of climate change on the region, the bank said Thursday.

The assistance, it said, will be through policy and capacity development and supporting investments in climate change adaptation.

Most Central and West Asian countries are low greenhouse gas emitters but they are among the most carbon-intensive economies in the world, the Manila-based multilateral lender said in a press release.

"Climate change is taking its toll on the region, with declining crop yields, retreat of glaciers, increased diseases and heat stress, and changes in ecosystem functions," the release quoted Mark Kunzer, Environment Specialist of ADB's Central and West Asia Department, as saying.

ADB said the region needs immediate investments to reduce risks from increased flooding, drought, dust storms, and other consequences of climate change.

"There are options available but certain barriers, limitations, and cost constraints need to be overcome," the ADB said.

The ADB-backed project is aimed to promote low-carbon and inclusive economic growth by promoting investments in energy efficiency, fuel switching, industrial processes, renewable energy, improved waste management systems, and land restoration.

Funding for the project will be sourced from ADB's technical assistance funding program, while the balance of 500,000 U.S. dollars needed to complete funding for the project will be provided by the governments of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, the ADB said.

(Xinhua News Agency May 14, 2009)