gent sejko : opening remarks - 6th imf and wb constituency meeting opening remarks by mr gent sejko, governor of the bank of albania, at the joint 6th annual costituency meeting, organised by the international monetary fund and the world bank, tirana, 16 february 2024. * * * your excellency, prime minister, dear ministers of finance and fellow governors, allow me, first of all, to welcome you to this annual meeting of our joint constituency in the international monetary fund and the world bank, which is taking place at the new premises of the bank of albania. also, let me highlight that this is a special pleasure for us, along with the minister of finance of albania, as we have the opportunity to provide this welcome at the opening session of this event, for which we are the host country. dear participants, the economic reality in recent years has been challenging. the 2020 - 2021 pandemic and the economic consequences of russia's military aggression against ukraine have been quite serious. however, i believe i am expressing a common opinion if i point out that the resilience of our economies and societies in the face of these challenges has been admirable. in particular, against a global context characterized by a rapid surge in prices, uncertainty and financing costs, we have managed to ensure positive growth rates in the overall economy, in employment and in wages. we have made progress in reducing inflation, and we have safeguarded the overall economic and financial stability of our economies. albania is also part of this encouraging narrative. the year 2023 ended with economic growth at around 3. 5 %, the unemployment rate at historic lows, as well as foreign debt, public debt and non - performing loans ratios below pre - shock levels. in particular, inflation was halved over the past year, down to 4 %, while indicators of the banking sector's soundness remain positive. a surprise in 2023 was an increase in the interest of foreigners in our country. albania welcomed around 10 million visitors, climbing to third place in the world for the fastest growth in tourism and recording – for the first time in its history – a current account surplus. also, the year 2023 is well on its way to being the year with the highest level of foreign direct investments, proving once again the attractiveness of albania as an investment destination. the bank of albania has made its contribution in this regard. we have addressed the increase in inflation in a timely

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