the stability and growth pact not only favors other countries but also future generations, which is particularly important in those countries where population aging is a significant phenomenon. against the grain of some critics of the stability and growth pact, i am strongly convinced that the pact is sufficiently flexible to support budgetary discipline also in economically difficult times. without the stability and growth pact, emu would - in my opinion - suffer from a “ design flaw. ” let me conclude with expressing my conviction that the enlargement of the european union and the economic and monetary integration of the acceding countries will not only strengthen the role of the european union as a global player in the long term, but also make a sustainable contribution to stability, peace and welfare in europe. as this is the last east - west conference before the upcoming eu enlargement, we wanted to take this opportunity to mark this historical event with a reception welcoming the new members. i hope you will be pleasantly surprised by what we have planned for tonight, but let me, at this stage, only tell you this much : we will all have a chance to learn more about each other ’ s countries, cultures and institutions. before i hand over the floor to imf managing director horst kohler, let me conclude by welcoming you once again to vienna and wishing you a fruitful, stimulating and successful conference.

benjamin e diokno : welcome remarks - 6th asean central bank heads of internal audit network meeting welcome remarks by mr benjamin e diokno, governor of bangko sentral ng pilipinas ( bsp, the central bank of the philippines ), at the 6th asean central bank heads of internal audit network meeting, 16 november 2021. * * * distinguished heads of internal audit ( ia ) and delegates of central banks in the asean region and the asian development bank, esteemed guest speakers, colleagues from the bangko sentral ng pilipinas, ladies and gentlemen, a pleasant day to all. on behalf of the monetary board and the bangko sentral ng pilipinas, i welcome you all to the 6th asean central bank heads of internal audit network meeting, which the bsp is hosting for the first time. it is unfortunate that we could not have hosted this meeting in manila where we can personally meet and welcome you, but i am sure that this virtual conference will be just as engaging and productive. behind the theme of this year ’ s meeting, which is aptly entitled “ internal audit at the forefront of digital innovation ”, is a similar novel concept : digital darwinism. it revolves around a simple rule : evolve or risk being irrelevant. in the last decade, we have witnessed how technology has dramatically advanced our day - to - day lives. we have also seen how the financial services industry has evolved to offer more customer - centric financial products, leveraging on emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and robotics, among others. the pandemic has further quickened this evolution. if anything, the pandemic has taught us that digitalization is no longer desirable to have, but a must - have. like other asean nations, the philippines aims to regain and surpass opportunities lost to the covid crisis. we want an economy that is stronger and more technologically advanced than ever before. one way of achieving this is through financial digitalization. going digital, building on it, tailoring it, securing it, and pushing it to new frontiers is imperative if central banks are to be successful in navigating the post - covid - 19 economy. in 2020, the bsp has launched the digital payments transformation roadmap where we aim to achieve two major goals by 2023 : first, that at least half of all financial transactions in the country are done digitally ; and second, at least 70 percent of filipino adults have financial accounts.