diagnostic to establish the suitability of uganda ’ s financial sector legal framework to branchless banking. the results of this study should result into roll out of branchless banking under a suitable regulatory framework and consequent reduction of cost of opening outlets in hard - to - bank areas. the bank has also licensed three mobile money network operators ( mnos ), mtn, airtel and utl in partnership with stanbic bank, standard chartered bank and dfcu bank respectively. by end march, the operators had 1, 968, 125 registered customers and in the period january to march 2011, the total number of transactions were 13, 220, 674 with a total value of shs. 551, 010 million. it is our belief that a combination of the above initiatives will open new opportunities for financial intermediation and inclusion in a safe and sound system. in conclusion, the quest for financial inclusion should be complemented by safety and soundness to ensure that gains made in inclusion are not eroded by loss of savings or loss of confidence in financial institutions. the bou will continue to support formalisation of innovative approaches through improvements in regulatory framework as well as working with other stakeholders. however, unlicensed institutions that take deposits from the general public under the guise of member - savings and those intermediating compulsory savings are doing so illegally and must stop. i also wish to state, as i conclude, that new technology especially in the area of electronic money transfer and agency banking are destined to drive most of the future efforts aimed at financial inclusion. a lot of care must therefore be taken to build sufficient risk - mitigation and regulatory mechanisms that ensure safety of savers ’ funds but at the same time promoting further advances to avoid stifling technological development. with these remarks i once again thank amfiu for the foresight which led to the establishment of the amfiu calendar at which very useful topical issues are discussed. it is my ardent hope that the conference will achieve its objectives as set out in the agenda. i thank you. bis central bankers ’ speeches

jean - pierre roth : fifteen months of financial crisis – a status report summary of a speech by mr jean - pierre roth, chairman of the governing board of the swiss national bank and chairman of the board of directors of the bank for international settlements, at the associazione bancaria ticinese, centro di studi bancari, vezia, 3 december 2008. the complete speech can be found in french on the swiss national bank ’ s website ( www. snb. ch ). * * * the financial crisis broke out a little over fifteen months ago. the magnitude of the turmoil experienced by the financial industry has been greater than all the forecasts. so far, our entire attention has been focused on the problems of the financial industry, while the real economy appeared to be passing through this difficult period without too many problems. we now realise that this view was deceptive : the situation in the non - financial sector is deteriorating substantially. this could lead to new challenges in 2009. after having benefitted extensively from the international expansion of the past few years, we are currently experiencing the consequences of a widespread recession. this situation is difficult for our country, but we may be better placed than others for coping with it.