now undergoing rapid transformation, a process that demands a greater role for market forces in fostering a more competitive environment and a more efficient resource allocation. for us, complementary data beyond the core statistical data series mentioned above are needed. last year, we joined a long list of developing countries in subscribing to the imf general data dissemination standards ( gdds ). we are working actively to meet the higher standards, the special data dissemination standards ( sdds ), which has been adopted by the developed and the emerging market economies. given our responsibilities as policy makers and regulators of the financial system, we at the central bank can claim a higher than average stake in the development of our statistical base. our new monetary policy framework – centred around the repo rate - places a high premium on the ability to accurately measure the pulse of the economy at any point in time and to anticipate short term trends. very often this is a difficult task because sufficient information is not available on a timely basis. the bank has tried to close the gap itself by introducing new series. for example, we have introduced quarterly gdp estimates, export and import price indices, as well as new indicators of export competitiveness. we are currently working on the development of a range of indicators of building costs and real estate prices as well as more comprehensive estimates of consumer spending and private indebtedness. large capital flows have now become an important element in the economic landscape of trinidad and tobago. these flows have significant consequences for exchange markets, and their abrupt variations ( in either capital inflows or outflows ) can be a signal of impending problems. the central bank is now working closely with private financial institutions and with the trinidad and tobago securities and exchange commission ( sec ) to collate more reliable data on the capital account of the balance of payments. for countries with access to international capital markets, like trinidad and tobago, reliable and timely data along with transparent statistical practices are a basic requirement. important institutional changes are currently in train at the central statistical office ( cso ) to strengthen the organization ’ s autonomy and to enable it to better fulfill this mandate. the key to the restructuring is the planned transition of the institution to executive status ( similar to the central bank ) and the implementation of measures to build operational capacity, including the strengthening of its human resources. these institutional changes will need to be accompanied by the use of more modern techniques. nowadays, information providers are engaged in more active deployment of web - enabled technology to

in the regulatory regimes of most developed countries. on the domestic front, the events of early 2009, which saw the central bank intervening in two insurance companies and an investment bank in the same group, served to reinforce the need for enhanced regulation of the sector. these events propelled the enactment of few amendments to the insurance act in february 2009. these amendments were needed to treat with some urgent immediate issues and covered : ( i ) quarterly reporting ; ( ii ) ensuring that the statutory fund is sufficient to provide policyholder protection on an ongoing basis, rather than only at the end of the year as required by the previous legislation ; ( iii ) timely corrective action by replacing a cumbersome, time consuming intervention regime with a more flexible and effective process that allowed for the issuance of compliance directions, and ( iv ) authorizing the sharing of information with other regulators. it is absolutely vital that our laws and regulations keep abreast of wider market developments. indeed, even in the absence of any problems there is always a need for legislative review. in most developed jurisdictions, periodic reviews are written into legislation to ensure that it remains current since financial innovation will eventually outpace and weaken legislative provisions. as noted earlier, the bank has engaged in extensive consultation with stakeholders in the insurance industry. this process began in october 2004 and was a major departure from the way the legislation was formulated in the past. the close collaboration and consultation with the industry has served to enhance the quality of the draft legislation which we are discussing today. ladies and gentlemen, it is important to emphasize that in the first instance, the most important reason for upgrading our insurance legislation is to protect the policy holder. that is why, for example, the draft legislation requires an increase in capital for insurance companies. obviously, something must be wrong when companies are required to hold only $ 1 – 3 million in capital, while they mobilise policy - holders ’ funds totalling hundreds of millions or billions of dollars. we recognise that many companies have held way beyond the statutory minimum capital. the draft legislation also seeks to ensure that insurance companies correctly value their liabilities so that they could hold adequate reserves to protect their policy - holders. currently there are no prescribed actuarial standards for insurance in trinidad and tobago. this has resulted in serious under - estimation of liabilities and reserves and also makes it difficult to make inter - company comparisons. the draft legislation recognises that some insurance companies would be content with more traditional and safer modes of operations, while others would