for flexible exchange rate arrangements and adopted inflation targeting, while others ( bulgaria and the baltic states ) resorted to a fixed exchange rate regime under a currency board. at first sight, it seems that the latter group of countries are better prepared in terms of euro adoption ( the baltic states have already taken this step but they, being much smaller and more open economies, are a special case ), given the fiscal discipline pursued and the nominal convergence stage in those economies. this has helped keep macroeconomic imbalances under control, yet the flipside of the coin is that the pace of real convergence was slowed by these powerful constraints, at least in the aforementioned case of bulgaria. consequently, it can be said that both approaches have benefits and drawbacks and that the story of these economies on their catching - up journey is still far from over. i would point out that there are resources for all these economies to continue to grow relatively fast. while convergence will go on, it is unsure at what pace, how linear and how sustainable it will be, and the surprises that the future has in store for us are difficult to foresee, just like the recent past differed from what we could have forecasted two decades earlier, for instance. the third lesson concerns the manner in which the global economic and financial crisis was weathered. with only one exception ( poland, which has not seen a single year of recession precisely because it managed to adequately combine exchange rate flexibility and fiscal discipline ), all cee economies witnessed periods of economic decline – more or less severe, shorter or longer – owing to the crisis, irrespective of their exchange rate or monetary policy regimes. the steepest decline was in romania, which had to undergo the most painful fiscal adjustment. this occurred because the fiscal policy during the pre - crisis boom had been strongly procyclical, so that the economic advance of over 9 percent in 2008 was followed by sharp falls in the next two years : – 5. 5 percent in 2009 and – 3. 9 percent in 2010. the lesson learned here is that there is no viable alternative to a predictable and coherent mix of economic policies and structural reforms. let me stress that this mix should remain in place even when facing the challenges of election years, and there are several election rounds in romania in 2019 and 2020. the fourth lesson could deal with the issue of whether joining the euro area ensures faster growth or not. i attended the celebrations marking the 10th anniversary of euro adoption in slovenia and slovakia. while in

yuba raj khatiwada : business ethics for a prosperous nepal remarks by dr yuba raj khatiwada, governor of the central bank of nepal, at the programme on “ business ethics for a prosperous nepal ”, organized by the world forum for ethics in business, kathmandu, 17 january 2014. * * * rt. hon ’ ble chairman of council of ministers his holiness sri sri ravi shanker jee, distinguished participants, ladies and gentlemen let me thank the organizers for rendering me the honour to speak on ethics in business amid this high profile gathering in the presence of sri sri ravi shanker jee. as i stand to speak on this topic, we have a question to ourselves as to whether we can really apply in our practical life the words we speak and hear at this event here, and adhere to the noble principles and values raised in this discourse. we understand that business ethics are moral principles that guide the way a business behaves. acting in an ethical way involves distinguishing between “ right ” and “ wrong ” and then making the “ right ” choice. while it is relatively easy to identify unethical business practices, it is not always easy to create similar hard - and - fast definitions of good ethical practice. making money is not unethical, but doing the same in an immoral way is unethical. a business company must make a profit for competitive return to its shareholders ’ capital and treat its customers, employees and other stakeholders fairly. strong returns for shareholders capital should not be achieved at the expense of social, environmental and moral considerations. indeed a business can thrive in the long - term only if it also takes into account the needs of other stakeholders such as governments, employees, suppliers, communities and customers. further, any business should minimize any harm to the environment and work in a way that does not damage the communities in which it operates. in the present day world, many companies maximize profits unethically via unhealthy marketing, slashing employee expenses, lowering product quality or impacting the environment negatively. use of violence, sex, and other unethical means to draw attention to a product or service is an example of unhealthy marketing. such unethical business practices can lead to smeared public relations and a loss of trust and respect to business people from the consumers. distinguished participants, as we have witnessed the birth of new entrepreneurial and so called knowledge based economic age, we have also seen a growing moral and spiritual