zeti akhtar aziz : overview of scenario thinking and planning official remarks by dr zeti akhtar aziz, governor of the central bank of malaysia and chairman of the international centre for leadership in finance ( iclif ) board of directors, at the iclif's seminar on “ overview of scenario thinking and planning ”, kuala lumpur, 5 october 2006. * * * i am very pleased to welcome you this morning to iclif's scenario thinking and planning seminar. there has been growing interest amongst corporations and policy makers in the usefulness of scenario thinking and planning as a strategic tool. in the current environment that is rapidly changing and highly uncertain with new risks emerging, we need to be better positioned to be prepared for the future. scenario thinking and planning may offer a solution to managing such situations. good scenarios have been used most productively by many multinationals to challenge perceived business expectations. scenario analysis and planning have also been extensively used by policymakers to ensure a state of readiness to respond to sudden or significant changes in the environment. scenario analysis and planning is particularly relevant to the financial services sector in which the pace of change has accelerated exponentially in this recent decade. unpredictable shifts in the environment have also heightened the uncertainty and increased the unpredictability of the future. thinking about the possibilities and probabilities thus becomes relevant. scenario analysis and planning offers a solution. scenarios however, are not projections, predictions or preferences but rather it provides a way of making sense of uncertainties and in addition it challenges our assumptions about what the future holds. scenario building today is synonymous with thinking broadly and more freely about a problem, enlarging the frames of reference and involving different worldviews, rather than seeing a situation from a single perspective. essentially scenario planning interventions have been most useful in supporting the construction of multiple frames of future states of possibilities. the process of scenario planning enhances the evaluation and integration of information and promotes contingency planning. scenarios are also important for risk management. as risk is inherent in any business activity the framework becomes a useful tool in risk assessment and management. most of all a major risk in the current environment is the lack of preparedness for how the environment might change and for the new challenges that may emerge. to attempt to predict these changes in any specific manner in this environment would be highly speculative. the risk management process therefore involves preparing for, rather than attempting to predict the change. this would promote an increased level of preparedness to cope

that saw more than 47 million interactions with fen ’ s various outreach programmes. a key achievement by fen members working collaboratively has been the integration of financial education elements into all levels of the formal school curriculum, from pre - school right up to upper secondary levels. financial education modules have also been introduced as electives in college programmes. another important milestone was the development of the financial literacy core competency framework for malaysian adults which now serves as a key reference for 1 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches financial education interventions to effect lasting behavioural change. today ’ s event is part of a month - long national campaign on financial literacy organised annually by fen to raise awareness on the importance of financial literacy and take fen ’ s message directly to the public. with the theme “ navigate your finances : stay safe and act wisely ”, this year ’ s financial literacy month is focused on providing financial education support during these challenging times, creating greater awareness on advisory and redress avenues, and encouraging informed and responsible practices to manage exceptional financial challenges in the short term, but without losing sight of longer term financial goals and needs. financial education is of course a marathon, rather than a one - month sprint. it requires us to constantly adapt and flex our approaches to take into account the different experiences that individuals have with money and finance ; the changing attitudes of society ; and changing risks facing consumers as the financial landscape continues to evolve. this is why an opportunity like this to share approaches, considerations and insights is invaluable. the financial hardships brought about by covid - 19 has been a sobering revelation of the critical knowledge gaps that exist in our community. too many malaysian households have been thrust into vulnerable financial positions that might have been mitigated, due to high debt levels, low buffers and poor financial habits that left them sorely unprepared to cope with unexpected shocks during the pandemic. when confronted with having to deal with their financial difficulties, many struggled to take appropriate steps to gain control of their situation and make good choices. as a result, individuals have had to resort to drawing down on retirement funds, or incurring higher debt just to get by. and there are still too many who continue to fall prey to desperate financial scams and fraud. indeed, the need to double down on financial education has never been clearer. we need to build stronger resilience among all malaysian households. we need to equip and empower malaysians with the right knowledge and