ADDRESS AT THE LAUNCH OF THE 2018 RBF STUDENT DIARY
MARIST BROTHERS HIGH SCHOOL, 30 January 2018
MR ESALA MASITABUA
DEPUTY GOVERNOR, RESERVE BANK OF FIJI
The Deputy Secretary Primary/Secondary (DSPS), Ministry of Education,
Mr. Timoci Bure;
The Principal, Mr. Salacakau and Vice Principal, Ms. Elder;
Students, teachers, school management, fellow Old Boys and friends.
Introductory Remarks
Good morning to you all.
I am extremely pleased to be here today to officially launch the Reserve
Bank of Fiji's
2018 Student Diary. Like Master Salacakau, some of my
fellow colleagues that I brought along with me from the Reserve Bank,
and my fellow officiant DSPS Bure, we all once walked these corridors
and laughed and cried in your classrooms. And not only did we play and
cheer in this very Hall, but we also spent many fitful hours here during
internal and external examinations! From the outset I would like to thank
the Reserve Bank Governor, Ariff Ali for his gracious suggestion to have
this launch here at MBHS. This is in fact my first public engagement as
Deputy Governor and it is fitting that I share this moment in my old
school and amongst you all.
Of course this would not have been possible without the approval of the
Ministry of Education, Heritage and Arts and for this we are sincerely
grateful. Last but not least, to the Principal, staff, management and
students of MBHS for warmly welcoming us this morning.
Student Diary
The student diary which we are launching this morning is part of the
Reserve Bank of Fiji's financial inclusion work. Under this broad agenda
we have a raft of initiatives that the Bank implements or supports to
promote financial literacy. This is the eighth edition of our student diary.
There are a total of 5,000 copies which the Ministry of Education will be
distributing to 37 secondary schools around Fiji. Again we are thankful
to the Ministry of Education for their invaluable assistance.
It is our fervent hope that you will find the diaries useful and that it will
complement your financial education development. Embedded in the
diary are tools for learning good habits of managing your money which
we hope will inculcate good habits and help you to make good financial
decisions as you grow in life.
your financial literacy, this year's diary
Besides enhancing revolves
"The Climate is changing, we must change
around the theme too". We in
the Pacific are all too familiar with this phenomenon. Climate change and
the discourse on the global stage teach us so many life lessons.

We have a moral obligation as humanity to those that are following
behind us, and those who have yet to come. We are merely passing
through earth on our life's journey. We have the obligation to leave
our beautiful surroundings as good as if not better than we found it
for the generations to come.
 We must be responsible and build sustainable habits or we risk
inadvertently destroying things that are near, dear and valuable
to us.

To achieve noble and worthy goals requires commitment,
dedication and frequently immense sacrifices. Our path is often too
hard to be trodden on alone, so we must assist one another and seek
help where we can.
 Life can seem most unfair; sometimes we are at the mercy of others
or suffer as a consequence of others. However we must not let that
'blind' us from our abilities and capabilities. Everyone is capable
of great things. We saw this at play with a small nation like Fiji
assuming global leadership of this issue, described as one of the
greatest challenges of our generation. From over 190 countries,
fate, circumstance or whatever you may attribute it to, chose Fiji
and our Honourable Prime Minister to assume the Presidency of
the United Nations Climate Change Conference of Parties or
COP23 in Bonn, Germany.

Always be ready, be prepared, when destiny or fate comes
knocking presenting an opportunity, choosing you, choosing us,
rise and be counted.
Fiji continues to make numerous efforts to address climate change
"Green Growth Framework" to guide the
including having introduced a
The Reserve Bank and Fiji's
nation in building a sustainable future.
financial sector are also in support of this cause and are committed
Fiji's financial sector.
towards greening Recent RBF initiatives around
this include joining the Sustainable Banking Network, committing to
develop and promote sustainable business models that support
communities' response to climate
change under the Maya
-
Declaration and issuing sovereign Green Bonds a world first for an
emerging market.
I also encourage you to use the financial pages in the diary to record your
daily expenses as it will help you develop the habit of tracking and
assessing your financial decisions to better plan for a sustainable future.
I wish to take this opportunity to acknowledge the continued commitment
of all the teachers to your personal development. To the students, my
advice to you is to continue asking questions. Be inquisitive and further
your learning whenever possible. Your teachers play a key role in giving
you the necessary guidance to help you develop your financial literacy
but it is up to you to make the most of your opportunities.
Conclusion
I hope you will find this year's
student diary both useful and engaging. I
encourage you to use it well and develop yourselves to become not just
financially responsible but environmentally-conscious. Remember that a
concerted effort is required to ensure a sustainable future for us and our
planet, therefore every bit that you do counts.
Finally, I would like to wish the teachers and students all the very best for
the new academic year. May you flourish always, thank you!
END