country in the world to use this new security feature. on the 50 and 20 dollar notes, we have retained the “ multi image hologram ” or the round silver foil, but instead of having both of them of the same shape we have different shapes – the 50 dollars have the shape of a turtle and the 20 dollars the shape of a fan. on counterfeits, i wish to clarify that in relation to the total value of currency in circulation, the combined value of counterfeits is extremely negligible at. 0009 percent. we obviously cannot completely eradicate counterfeits. however, we are well aware of the importance of safeguarding at all times public confidence in our currency. the bank will therefore continue to work with the fiji police force to renew media awareness on the security features of our currency notes. for the first time, fiji ’ s banknotes will vary in length to help the visually impaired. the 100 dollar note will be the length of our existing banknotes. the length of the lower denomination will progressively reduce by 5 millimetres. this means that the two dollars will be the shortest note being 25 millimetres less than the 100 dollar note. the notes will all have the same width as the current notes. i am confident that we will be proud of our new banknotes. in the next two weeks, we will be starting a public awareness campaign to inform the public of the new notes. the new banknotes will go into circulation from 10 april. the new and the “ existing ” notes will circulate side by side until the existing notes go out of circulation. both designs are of course legal tender. with the introduction of the 100 dollar banknote, we have the same highest denomination with developed countries like the united states, australia and new zealand. the united states has stated that it is not raising its highest banknote above 100 dollars. i believe that it would be a very, very long time before fiji will think again about raising its highest bank note. once again, i express our sincere thanks to his excellency, the president for agreeing to be our chief guest. we are indeed honoured that you have graced the occasion with your presence today. i now have the pleasure of inviting his excellency to address us.

sunil mendis : a brief look at financial information technology keynote address by mr sunil mendis, governor of the central bank of sri lanka, for the financial information systems seminar, colombo, 8 september 2004. * * * his excellency akio suda, the ambassador for japan in sri lanka, mr yoshihisa onishi, executive director, fisc, other officers from the fisc in japan, ladies and gentlemen, the central bank of sri lanka is happy to co - sponsor this programme together with the fisc of japan ( center for financial industry information systems ), in view of the importance of financial information technology in the financial services industry. sri lanka is no exception to continuous changes in the technology used by its financial services industry. in a market driven financial system, for information to be effective, there should be two vital ingredients, that is system integrity and timeliness - both of which are crucial. the more dependable your information systems are, the more efficient and competitive banks can be as a player in the financial services industry. that is why we see banks investing heavily in it. globally too, with the interdependence of markets their integration is facilitated through information systems which link these markets which make the world a very small place indeed on a pc monitor where the whole world is virtually at your doorstep. the fisc, therefore, has contributed significantly, over the last 20 years, to making information systems more efficient and dependable through their research activities and technical co - operation programmes which have been extended to asian countries such as sri lanka. of particular interest to banks would be the security guidelines on computer systems and audit guidelines for information systems of financial institutions, which they have issued. some of these can be used as guidelines by our banking industry. government and the people of japan have contributed immensely to the development of this country for many decades in the past in different fields and their support in sharing their knowledge on financial information system with the sri lankan financial sector is greatly appreciated. in this connection i wish to thank the fisc who has devoted so much of its time and effort to bring in expertise in this area to market participants in sri lankaa€™s financial system. this would also provide a good forum for our banks to exchange ideas on specific security features adopted by the fisc. i have no doubt that this seminar will provide an excellent opportunity for useful interaction amongst participants, and i would like to convey my best wishes.