Also important are the requirements for complaints to be handled promptly by financial institutions. Ladies and Gentlemen, The Malaysian experience Let me briefly take a moment to share with you the experience of Malaysia in developing an enabling environment to promote financial literacy. For several decades, Malaysia has made significant economic progress. The economy grew by an average of 7% per year, while the per capita income has increased from USD 300 in 1970 to USD 4,236 in 2004. From a commodity-based economy, Malaysia now has a highly diversified economy, with significant contribution from the manufacturing and services sectors. Women account for about half of Malaysian population, and have played an important role in this economic transformation process. Women account for about 45% of the labour force, with increasing representation at the professional, managerial and technical levels. Such progress is achieved following increased educational opportunities that have been made available to women. Female primary and secondary students account for half of total enrolment, while at public universities, female students account for 55% of total enrolment. While women continue to play a major role in household financial planning, a new generation of women who are financially independent and sophisticated is emerging. The financial sector in Malaysia has also experienced significant progress, with greater diversity of players, products as well as delivery channels with extensive distribution nationwide. The widespread distribution of financial institutions has been a conscious and deliberate policy to ensure the widest reach of financial services to both the urban and rural areas.

After a thorough examination by a team of international experts, our financial system was certified as being healthy, well supervised in the context of a comprehensive legal framework, and strongly compliant with most of the relevant international standards and codes. We cannot, of course, afford to be complacent. A good reputation takes time and considerable effort to earn, but can easily be lost. It is the joint responsibility of the CBM and the MFSA, the credit institutions and the other financial service providers, and of all market participants, including the financial lawyers and accountants, to ensure that Malta’s financial centre remains synonymous with integrity, efficiency and reasonable costs. I emphasize this point because the recent rapid growth in the depth and breadth of the financial sector, and the expectation of further expansion, has sometimes given rise to behaviour - such as the use of aggressive methods to induce prospective customers to buy financial products and services and the resort to misleading advertising - which stretches the interpretation of our laws and regulations close to their limit. There should be no doubt in anybody’s mind that the CBM and the MFSA, acting in the common interest, will continue to exercise their respective responsibilities with diligence and rigour to ensure the integrity and stability of the financial system. In conclusion, I would like to wish Mediterranean Bank success in their Malta venture and to express the hope that their presence here will also serve to enhance the reputation of our financial centre. 2  BIS Review 92/2006