the same monetary unit cannot be disassociated from a deep - rooted sense of joint responsibility. economic policy decisions have in large part become collective decisions. with regard to financial markets, centralised authorities must be created in order to limit the excessive risks undertaken on the part of banks and increase the efficiency of common rules. furthermore, a legal framework for managing and resolving banking crises, which safeguards public finances, needs to be put in place, as is happening in other countries. in this way, the european commission ’ s recent proposal for a european council regulation which establishes a single banking supervision mechanism for the euro area – in which the ecb will play an important role – is a bold and necessary step towards creating a single financial market which ensures financial stability in the euro area and the european union * * * i would now like to return to the issue of economic structural reform. when devising new rules for public finances and financial stability, it must not be forgotten that such matters are closely tied to issues of competitiveness and employment. the issue of financial stability in particular cannot be separated from that of competitiveness and of economic development. as economic theory teaches us, growth is the result of labour and capital dynamics and of their productivity. it is vital to promote innovation, particularly in the european economies in which an ageing population is tending to reduce the size of the working population. an economy ’ s ability to be innovative depends in large part on its human capital. in this sense, improving human capital through high quality education is crucial in increasing productivity and, in this way, creating the necessary conditions for robust and sustainable economic development. with the rapid advances in technology in recent years and the growing importance of emerging economies in international markets, human capital has played an increasingly important role in guiding the transformation of the productive structure found in advanced countries which, although to varying degrees, have increased their specialisation in activities requiring higher levels of knowledge. education improves the quality of the labour force, increasing the efficiency of a fundamental factor in production processes. moreover, having highly - trained human capital facilitates the assimilation of technological progress and innovative technology, increasing the overall productivity of the economic system. it is then clear that it is vital for our economies that we exploit the skills and capabilities of our students in order to improve competitiveness and vigour of the firms which offer these students work, or which the students themselves will go on to set up. innovation and human capital are all the more important the closer a country is

mario draghi : text of the video message given at the award ceremony for the second luca pacioli award speech ( via video ) by mr mario draghi, president of the european central bank, at the ca ’ foscari university of venice, at the award ceremony for the second luca pacioli award, 13 october 2012. * * * it is a great honour for me to receive this award today from the university where, at the end of the 1970s, i had my first professional experience as a professor. it is an honour, above all, because of the grounds on which the award is given : innovation, versatility, an interdisciplinary approach, the integration of research and policy. all of these qualities are necessary if we are to find adequate responses to the current challenges posed by the rapid social and economic transformation undergone in the last few decades. it is with regret that i cannot be there with you today but international obligations keep me far from venice, a city of which i have many memories and that i regard with much affection. * * * “ double - entry bookkeeping … is one of the finest inventions of the human mind and every prudent master of a house should introduce it into his economy ”, 1 to quote one of goethe ’ s characters in wilhelm meister ’ s theatrical calling. luca pacioli, whose name the award bears, was an extraordinary man of science, but also took a keen interest in philosophy and art, a typical representative of our renaissance. the invention of double - entry bookkeeping is generally attributed to him, although historians agree that he never laid claim to it himself. at the very least, pacioli defended the value of this practice, probably in use for centuries, right here in this city which welcomed him in 1464 shortly before he turned 20, and which published his key works, including “ de computis et scripturis ”, which was consistently used by researchers of accountancy as a reference work for more than 500 years. pacioli could see the potential of double - entry bookkeeping as an instrument for scientific and economic progress in a fundamental profession such as that of a merchant in venice in the 15th and 16th centuries. on this point, i would like to quote a brief passage from “ de computis et scripturis ”, which forms part of his well - known book “ summa de arithmetica, geometria, proportioni et proporzionalita ” ( review of arithmetic