Ardian Fullani: Cooperation in the field of banking supervision in Albania
Speech by Mr Ardian Fullani, Governor of the Bank of Albania, on the occasion of the signing of the
Agreement on the field of Banking Supervision between the Bank of Albania and the Banking and
Payments Authority of Kosova, Prishtina, 11 July 2005.
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I would like to take the opportunity from this occasion of the signing of the Agreement on the Banking
Supervision to say that I really feel excited for being here in Prishtina today. It is my first visit since I
took over the position as Governor of the Bank of Albania and I would like to assure you that it will not
be the last one.
There are many reasons that pushed me to make this commitment today in front of you, and among
them, I would like to focus on the necessity that our two institutions, the Banking and Payments
Authority of Kosova and the Bank of Albania should raise the level of cooperation and reciprocal
assistance.
During this last period, I have personally attended meetings not only at the central banks of our region,
but I have also met with high representatives of the interested international institutions. I have found
everywhere an atmosphere of understanding and support, particularly with regard to the initiative for a
greater cooperation between the region's central banks.
I would like to focus a bit more on this point, as I am of the opinion that it represents one of the
relevant directions to which we should pay more attention in the future. The agreement that we signed
today is a supporting evidence in this direction and based on the conversations I had with Mr.
Svetchine, the UNMIC officials and with Mr. Kosumi, I can say that they have shown their goodwill and
commitment as regards cooperation in this field.
More specifically, we have established contacts with all the central banks of the region, up to the high
levels of representation and I have realized that in every case they have expressed their readiness to
further intensify the regional cooperation in this context. On the other hand, in the contacts with
relevant international organizations such as the European Commission, World Bank, as well as the
European Central Bank and many of the members of the European System of Central Banks, I have
widely discussed this issue and I have found their total support in relation to the specific problems that
characterize the economic and financial development of our region. At present, there exist many
opportunities that we should use in a wise manner, since a collective action from our part would
greatly improve the image of the region in front of the international community and it would make our
final aspiration for EU membership easier to achieve.
On the other hand, I think that we should benefit from the work in group for yet another reason.
Regardless of the different levels of the countries' developments and despite many other geopolitical
factors, I hold the opinion that in the fields of economy, the banking sector, structural reforms, finance
and markets, we show the same symptoms and to a certain degree, priorities converge. This is why I
think that foreign assistance will be more effective. This is why I think that the several projects that
may be prepared by the foreign donors would be more effective. I think that the region will show more
or less the same progress without creating wide contrasts which - according to a long-term
perspective - could emerge as serious problems.
I hope that the agreement we signed today will only be the first step in the long road towards the
comprehensive cooperation between our two institutions. Personally, I consider the fields of payments,
research, human resources and statistics as other areas of reciprocal interest. Cooperation should be
concrete and should serve to the adoption of better standards, as well as to the exchange of opinions
with regard to various matters related to the regulatory framework.
As regards the Agreement of Understanding in the field of Banking Supervision, I would like to
emphasize the fact that a standard model which is in compliance with the European directives and the
Basel Committee has been adopted. This is a concrete and appropriate common commitment with
regard to cooperation in the field of supervision. It is worth mentioning that both parties, among other
things, will extend their cooperation in the field of organizing common events as well as various
training programmes of common interest.
Personally, I think that the Bank of Albania has already developed its supervisory and analyzing
capabilities to a satisfactory level, and as a consequence, I think that our assistance in this field will be
useful. At the same time, I think that in the Banking and Payments Authority of Kosova, as a more
recent institution, these capabilities are being developed at a satisfactory pace and I believe that its
staff holds many practices and findings that they could offer to their colleagues at the Bank of Albania.
At the conclusion of this short speech please let me express once more the great pleasure that this
visit gives to me. I avail myself of this opportunity to assure my Kosovar friends that they will always
find in me and in the Bank of Albania an open window not only for hospitality, but also an infinite
opportunity for cooperation, assistance and devotion.
Thank you once more.