was the result of the joint efforts of specialists from all seven participating banks and several members of the academia. the national bank of romania shared the costs of editing this publication with the central banks in austria, bulgaria and greece. the book has been the first one to include a full set of statistical and historical data showing key indicators in the economic and monetary areas for the countries in south - east europe, starting from the establishment of central banks in the 19th century to the end of world war ii. the book has proven ever since its value and utility. last year in vienna, there was a proposal regarding further research work based on the information contained within the balance sheets of the central banks. looking closer at the structure and the evolution of these balance sheets over time provides experts with useful insight as to how monetary policies have changed and have been implemented, how the main 1 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches operations have evolved, what profit the central banks have made and to what extent central banks have been able to secure and preserve their independence. i trust that the south - east european monetary history network could further capitalise on both the researchers ’ experience of compiling the statistical and historical data series and the cooperation among central banks. the national bank of romania has always shown interest in monetary and banking history. in that respect, we are currently re - organising / redesigning the nbr museum – which you are going to visit after lunch – aiming to bring to the visitors ’ attention both pieces of history and the role of the central bank in shaping the economy, thus shaping history. i will conclude here my brief address, wishing you fruitful debates and viable, useful solutions by the end of today. to all the foreign guests, may you enjoy your stay in romania. thank you. 2 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches

make an important contribution to convincing europeans that europe is not an abstract and remote idea, but something real and dynamic. the success of the euro cash changeover will depend to a large extent on the information the european citizens receive on their new money. this will help them to cope with the cash changeover. it will also help some of them get accustomed to denominations that differ from those they are familiar with. in this respect, the two following points are important : • the co - operation of all the professional parties directly involved - such as banks, retailers, cash in transit companies and vending machines operators – and • the quick acceptance of the new banknotes by the public. therefore, the ecb has embarked on the preparation of an information campaign. it has a budget of eur 80 million. we have the support of publicis, the communication agency we have selected to work with us on this crucial project. the national central banks of the euro area will implement the information campaign on a decentralised basis. our campaign addresses all users of the euro banknotes and coins. it includes users from outside the euro area, such as tourists, travellers and nationals from countries where the euro banknotes and coins will circulate widely as a parallel currency. in order to reach such a broad public, the information campaign uses relevant groups or institutions as partners or " multipliers ". in that context, banks, retailers, educational institutions or the media can be mentioned. we also dedicate particular attention to vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, the handicapped, the deaf and the blind and partially sighted, who need and will receive tailor - made information and training. our information campaign is being co - ordinated with other campaigns prepared by national authorities and the european commission. it can thus be considered a " specialised " campaign. the message of our campaign concentrates on four main issues : • the detailed visual appearance of the banknotes and coins, • their main security features, • the denominations of euro banknotes and coins ; and • the changeover modalities. i should like to emphasise how particularly well the co - ordination of the campaigns in belgium has been. the national campaign here is really complementary to our campaign. this is ensured since the national bank of belgium is chairing the national changeover board. although our information campaign, and particularly our communication towards the media and our cooperation with partners, was already started months ago, an advertising campaign focusing mainly on the details of the euro