from 35 to 27 percent and the excluded falling from 38 to 33 percent, access to finance for rural areas is still low, with 64 percent of the rural populace not accessing formal financial services and 21 percent being excluded from any form of financial services. this is a huge drag to development that is driven by financial access. we know from established wisdom that poverty is very rural based in countries we come from. access to finance allows the poor to escape poverty by building their assets through savings and credit. at the central bank of kenya, we remain committed to promoting innovations that will enhance financial access and inclusion for the people of kenya. these reforms we believe will inevitably enhance access to finance in rural areas. my colleagues will be alluding to these reforms in the course of this conference. ladies and gentlemen : the size of credit to the agricultural sector in kenya by the banking sector has risen over the last five years from usd335 million ( ksh. 28. 1 billion ) in december 2007 to usd620 million ( ksh. 52. 7 billion ) as at february 2011. this growth is explained bis central bankers ’ speeches partly by the outcomes of the initiatives enumerated above. the level is expected to increase once the reform initiatives take root. to conclude my remarks, ladies and gentlemen, let me take this opportunity to reiterate the commitment of central bank of kenya to contribute to the fulfillment of afraca ’ s vision. it is my hope that this conference shall provide participants with key lessons on how to achieve a rural africa where people have access to sustainable financial services for economic development. i also reiterate that it is only through the concerted efforts of all players, governments, development agencies, donors, regulators and service providers that we will be able to deliver on this vision. with those few remarks, ladies and gentlemen, it is now my honour and pleasure to welcome the deputy prime minister and minister for finance, hon. uhuru kenyatta to deliver his keynote address and to officially open the 3rd afraca central banks forum. thank you. bis central bankers ’ speeches

and reporting practices, and building adequate capacity among the regulators. this requires moving swiftly to develop smart – standardized, measurable, actionable, reliable and transparent regulatory and supervisory frameworks – surveillance supervisory approaches, and assessment tools. this would effectively safeguard the soundness, integrity, efficiency, and stability of the financial system in kenya and the region. i believe smart regulation is the way to go because its very architecture minimises regulatory burden, focuses on outcomes rather that processes, and applies regulatory measures in proportion to the risk profile of individual institutions. smart regulations allow regulators to enforce more efficiently and allow regulated entities to comply cheaply and reliably. 3. stress testing : stress testing has become a cornerstone of prudential supervision and risk assessment across the world. the central bank has strengthened its capacity and has conducted banking system stress testing exercise using the cihak framework since january 2015. we have drawn important lessons from the results of these exercises and i bis central bankers ’ speeches urge other regulators to adopt similar tools, which clearly demonstrate the value of forwardlooking assessments of risks and vulnerabilities to the financial system. 4. financial innovations and consumer protection : new technologies have expanded the possibilities of financial services and products some of which have brought tremendous benefits to consumers, and resulted in measurable improvements in financial and greater access to the mainstream banking system. however, along with the rapid growth of these financial services is the emergence of complex financial products requiring enhanced consumer protection measures. i see the need to prioritise consumer protection in ways that will reduce if not eliminate consumer susceptibility to abuse or fraudulent activities. an effective consumer protection regime is essential and should broadly entail : • transparency and accountability in pricing ; • clarity on charges and terms of financial products and services ; • avoiding reckless and fraudulent lending practices ; • protection of financial service consumers against over - indebtedness ; • fair debt collections and transparent marketing practices ; • privacy of client data including credit information sharing arrangement amongst all credit providers through credit reference bureaus ; • ethical standards and staff behaviour in credit lending and screening practices ; and • alternative dispute resolution mechanism. in this regard, we should engage with our stakeholders to promote effective financial services consumer protection mechanisms through innovate financial education programmes and regulatory reforms. 5. recovery, crisis management and resolution frameworks : the global financial crisis that has affected us all since 2007, offers important lessons in crisis management and resolution frameworks. an important lesson from that experience is the central