. in addition, the png sustainable development program company obtained a banking licence from the central bank to operate the png micro finance limited in 2004, and has operations in ncd and western province. the micro - finance industry development is a meaningful way of mobilizing savings and servicing a large section of the community that do not enjoy financial facilities. the government has also introduced the district treasury roll - out program, which will further complement the provision of financial services in the rural parts of png. this entails the provision of treasury, banking and post office services from one outlet mainly at local and district levels. i am still very concerned about fast money scams. hard working papua new guineans have lost funds to con - artists who operate these scams. the bank of png continues to warn the public about these scams and individuals must avoid risking their savings. i also call on your rural industries members to support the bank in warning people about these illegal scams. the bank of png is also supportive of the government ’ s initiatives to promote export driven economic growth strategy through removal of impediments to trade and investment. in recognition of this initiative, the bank liberalized the foreign exchange control regime by freeing up controls in all but areas which are : • opening of foreign currency or kina accounts offshore by residents ; • approval for capital transaction contracts ; • gold export licenses ; and • approval for dealing in foreign exchange. to date, consistent with the banks expectation, the liberalization has had limited impact on the balance of payment position of the country. this is the result of an close and on - going dialogue and communication between the stakeholders and the bank of papua new guinea. macroeconomic review what has been the end result of this massive financial sector reform? the end result is that it has helped to achieve macroeconomic stability that is necessary for inducing sustainable economic growth. the stability in macroeconomic environment is reflected by the following : • decline in inflation from double digit levels to an annual headline inflation of 4. 6 percent in december 2005 ; • stable exchange rate ; • historically high levels of international reserves of over us $ 760 million that is sufficient for around 8 months of non mineral and 6 months of total import cover ; • sound fiscal management by the government was fully supported by high mineral tax receipts and saving from the reduction in interest expenditure. this led to a fiscal surplus of 0. 3 percent of gdp in 2005 ; • efficiency gains from financial sector reforms leading to high profitability

believe, unprecedented in our time. just as the offences and facilitators behind these challenges cross borders, so do the impacts. if we are to prevent the influence of criminal wealth on the peace and prosperity of our region we are going to have to work together like never before. 1 / 3 bis - central bankers'speeches a reminder of this - if we needed one - was neatly provided to us by a plane - load of cocaine crashing on a runway not far from here on july 26, 2020. the cocaine shipment, was facilitated – whether knowingly or unknowingly, by international banks, shipping agents, accountants, lawyers, high - value goods dealers, insurance companies -. the list goes on. each step of the process, and each facilitator, represents a missed opportunity to disrupt this shipment. the enormous profit to be made from drug trafficking will ensure that the international drug - trade is here to stay. and it is enormous amounts of money in the hands of criminals that should perhaps be of greatest concern, to those in this room. addressing the challenge presented by the blurring of organised crime, corruption and geopolitics - fuelled by vast amounts of money - will require a new way of thinking, and new techniques for data collection, analysis and sharing - to identify the offenders, their facilitators, and, the most effective means of shutting them down. successful disruption of multinational facilitators will require the accurate identification of those facilitators but it will also require identification of the best jurisdiction in which to take action ; the easiest offences to target ; and the most efficient legal process to be used. these choices and decision will need to be made collectively, by representatives from multiple jurisdictions across our region, acting with trust in each other, in the mutual best interest of the region. what i am proposing here is an unprecedented level of international cooperation to address an unprecedented challenge. if we are to maintain the peace and relative prosperity enjoyed in our region we, the people in this room, must accept the challenge of prioritising each other ; working together ; and trusting one another. this, i hope, is a challenge that you can accept - since it is quite possible that peace in our region depends on it. this trust and cooperation must extend also to a collective effort to comply with international standards. a collective pacific effort to prevent the threat of grey - listing of jurisdictions that are more often the victims of money laundering – not the perpetrators of