comply with the new international standards on antimoney laundering issued by the financial action task force ( the fatf ). this pressure will be filtered down to individual financial institutions, businesses, and government agencies to implement measures to meet the revised international standards. next year will be critical for fiji in this area. the reserve bank, the fiu together with the national anti - money laundering council will look at how we can adopt the revised requirements of the international standards. we will be relying on the private sector to assist us. the private sector ’ s contribution in conducting a national risk assessment will be critical. bis central bankers ’ speeches international scrutiny 2015 ladies and gentlemen, with international obligations, comes international scrutiny. an assessment of fiji ’ s anti - money laundering framework is scheduled for 2015. a review team of various experts will be visiting us, and to assess how effective we are with our efforts to comply with the international standards on anti - money laundering. this will be quite a comprehensive review. each of us, the private sector, regulatory authorities, law enforcement authorities, and many other departments and agencies of the fijian government will need to show that fiji remains a committed global partner in the fight against money laundering. we need to send a clear message that fiji ’ s financial system remains safe and we are taking all necessary measures to make life difficult for criminals to launder their proceeds of crime. last year in 2012, we had five successful money laundering cases. capacity building and training for our law enforcement officials remains a priority. fiji ’ s national coordinating body, the national anti - money laundering council, has embarked on a review of our existing aml measures that is expected to identify gaps in all the key areas, such as, customer due diligence and suspicious transaction reporting requirements, investigation and prosecution of money laundering offences, tracing proceeds of crime and gaps in networking and information exchange. a strong compliance by fiji would mean that our financial system is well regulated and is safe and sound. this will lead to more investor confidence and strengthen the reputation of fiji ’ s financial system. it will also mean that we are ready to investigate sophisticated financial crimes, such as, fraud and corruption. forfeiture of criminal and unexplained wealth would take us closer to a crime - free and corruption - free fiji. therefore, compliance with the international anti - money laundering standards is not optional. it is vital for the economic welfare of fiji. collaboration this conference also discussed the need for collaboration and networking and how it

2004. this compares with our earlier forecast of 2. 7 percent. the 2013 growth rate is broad based with positive contributions from all sectors, except for mining and quarrying. the revised growth projection for 2013 reflects a growing optimism in the economy and is consistent with the strong growth in various partial indicators, for example, net value added tax collections, inward remittances, domestic cement sales, and borrowing by the private sector for consumption and investment purposes. the surveys conducted by the rbf – business expectations and retail sales surveys – together with direct feedback from industry groups and the private sector, echo many positive sentiments as well. investment as a percentage of gdp is estimated at 28 percent in 2013, above the government ’ s target of 25 percent. the growth forecasts for 2014 and 2015 have also been revised upwards. official launch ladies and gentlemen, in concluding, let me also thank all the sponsors for their valuable contributions towards these small business awards. the reserve bank has been a sponsor since the inception of the awards in 2004 and we intend to continue supporting small businesses. we will be recognising micro businesses and their contributions later this year at a separate ceremony. i take this opportunity to extend my best wishes to the contenders of this year ’ s competition – you are all winners in my eyes. hibiscus is just a few days away and we hope that everyone will visit the rbf ’ s financial inclusion village at albert park to learn more about financial literacy, capital markets, and also support the micro entrepreneurs who will be selling their wares. once again, thank you for the kind invitation to share in the launch. i now have much pleasure in officially launching the 2013 fiji development bank small business awards. vinaka vaka levu. bis central bankers ’ speeches