Updated

Japan's central bank chief says Asia needs all the help it can get in fighting poverty as both wealth and poor nations grapple with widening inequality.

Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda said Tuesday he welcomes Beijing's push to support regional growth through the Chinese-led Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank.

Kuroda was speaking at a conference on the sidelines of the Asian Development Bank's annual meeting. It begins Thursday in Yokohama, near Tokyo.

The China-backed AIIB has been seen as a competitor to the ADB, which has been led by Japan and the U.S. since its founding in 1966.

Kuroda, a former president of the Manila, Philippines-based ADB, said the China-backed AIIB would bring welcome help in the effort to finance construction of vital infrastructure such as roads, ports and bridges.