human resources to anti - money laundering is a challenge. third, the cfatf report suggests that in most of our countries aml / cft supervision of designated non - financial businesses is virtually non existent. fourth, caribbean jurisdictions lack an effective operational framework. in such a framework, countries are required to maintain statistics not only on the number of aml / cft examinations but also on prosecutions, convictions and the value of assets forfeited. statistics to support the level of international cooperation and sharing of information must also be kept. an effective implementation process also requires a dynamic public awareness programme. the public must be involved in the fight against money laundering and terrorism and meaningful involvement can be achieved through their education on key issues and signals. growth in the general awareness of the nature of money laundering and its pernicious effects when combined with the training of relevant stakeholders can lead to the appropriate level of vigilance. ladies and gentlemen for all the reasons outlined above this workshop could not have come at a better time. from a quick glance, it is clear that the agenda is pertinent and relevant. i would hope that this workshop does three things : 1. help you to improve your knowledge of money laundering techniques and the mechanisms that could be devised to deal with money laundering. 2. further discussions on ways of making the public more aware of money laundering. they must know that money laundering is a crime, that it affects them, the economy and the society ; and 3. contribute to strengthening the regional anti - money laundering network, get to know each other better and devise ways of sharing information with each other. such a collaborative effort is needed in order to combat these two menaces. i wish you five days of fruitful and stimulating discussions.

. one such challenge is population ageing. although ireland ’ s demographics are currently relatively favourable, changes in the demographic structure of the population will occur over the coming decades. it is estimated that the number of people of working age for each person aged over 65 will halve from around four currently to just over two in 2050. 10 this will require increases in expenditure in areas such as pensions and healthcare. meanwhile, an older population and reduced labour supply would, all else equal, result in slower economic growth which will weigh on government revenue. productivity growth will remain key to ensuring sustainable growth in light of population ageing. addressing the fiscal challenges created by an ageing population as well as other existing and newly emerging priorities will require choices. careful management of the public finances over the medium term, with a focus on ensuring sustainable supply - side conditions, remains crucial for the irish economy. the sooner we take action related to the longer - term challenges that we know we are facing, the lower the ultimate cost will be. and the sooner we get to grips with the challenges we know about, the more resilient we will be to the future challenges which happen to be unknown today. conclusion so in conclusion, despite the challenges and uncertainties we face, the outlook for the irish economy is broadly positive. as ever, important policy decisions will need to be made in the months and years ahead. the central bank of ireland will rise to the challenges and we will continue to make our decisions based on the available evidence and careful analysis, and in the interests of the community as a whole. i look forward to the discussion. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 1 monetary policy report may 2022, bank of england inflation is projected to moderate to 2. 8 per cent in 2023 and 2. 1 per cent in 2024. 3 lydon, r., 2022. household characteristics, irish inflation and the cost of living. central bank of ireland, economic letter, vol. 2022, no. 1. 4 donnery, sharon. remarks to the irish economic association annual conference, on the occasion of the irish society for women in economics ( iswe ) launch. 6 may 2022. boyd, byrne, keenan and mcindoe - calder ( forthcoming ). pandemic puzzles : labour force recovery after a pandemic. quarterly bulletin signed article. 6 makhlouf, gabriel. inflation dynamics in a pan