Adult Basic Education has grown into a priority area of policy and action for economic, human and sustainable development. The World Bank officially recognises that no amount of growth can be sustained without basic education for young people and adults. UNDP report on human development is explicit about the relationship between development and raising adults‘ basic education level and has included basic education as an indicator of a country‘s development.
 
In the Asian Region, initial attempts in adult education were primarily focused on imparting basic literacy skills. While these programmes and policies met with some initial success, programmes lacked sustainability, and relapse into illiteracy by learners posed a significant problem. Adult basic education is more than literacy. It also includes the competencies, knowledge and expertise needed to improve living and working conditions and meeting the collective needs of the local community. At the same time literacy is no longer spoken of in abstract terms but in terms of its context, use and different meanings.
 
The reference guide details some of the institutions and delivery modes in the admi-nistration and coordination of adult learning policies and programmes. It represents therefore only a modest starting point for discussions on best practices, future directions, challenges, and achievements in adult learning in the Asian context.