regional integration and capacity development – as you are aware, the common market for eastern and southern africa ( comesa ) regional integration process is progressing well. milestones achieved so far include the establishment of the comesa monetary institute, currently hosted here at the kenya school of monetary studies in recognition of capacity building as one of the key pillars necessary for achieving successful integration. partner central banks have identified the need to revise the frameworks governing hr policies and strategies in line with international best practice. the call for the establishment of an integrated framework for a holistic approach to capacity building among central banks in comesa is therefore a pertinent one. implementation of such an approach will enable regional banks to realize greater economies of scale by taking advantage of regional institutional and human resources. capacity building must, therefore, take a unified approach, with regional central banks coming together to pool resources and take advantage of regional diversity to achieve greater efficiency in organizational performance. 2. performance management and talent development – traditionally, central banks have had a multi - generational workforce with the older segment forming the majority of the workforce. hr managers are therefore faced with the challenge of balancing the demands of the older workforce with that of the younger workforce using recognized management principles. the younger workforce comes ready to take up responsibilities at a lesser age and experience, but with high bargaining power due to their knowledge and skills at hand and techno - savvyness. a clear shift is thus bis central bankers ’ speeches seen in terms of organizational career commitment to individualized career management. managing this set of people is essential for the growth of any industry but especially for central banks where the composition of the workforce is rapidly changing. the challenge therefore is on the need to develop individuals who have performance potential on the basis of past record and knowledge - based expertise while at the same time tapping into the expertise of the younger generation without compromising staff morale. furthermore, the hired for life mentality of the past is fast becoming obsolete as workers increasingly change employers. hr must therefore place emphasis on proper work - life balance, while at the same time motivating staff through continuous learning opportunities and positive feedback. 3. managing change – organizations are getting more and more technologically oriented. the banking sector particularly, has undergone revolutionary changes enabled by technology. in the central bank of kenya, for example, a number of technological innovations have been implemented. the success of these interventions is no doubt heavily dependent on managing the people issues surrounding the process. in order to realize acceptance at all

accompanied by effective institutional governance oversight arrangements – a responsibility over which you as hr directors have a direct contribution. as you deliberate on the important factors driving central banks in the 21st century, therefore, please pay attention to the need to distinguish between the external aspects of governance ( mandate and accountability ) and the internal ones ( structure, management and staffing ). staff, at all levels must understand the business of central banks and understand the environment in which banks operate for effective performance and service delivery in the fulfillment of central bank ’ s core mandate. ladies and gentlemen, one main issue that may bis central bankers ’ speeches need to remain under closer focus throughout this three day symposium is the daunting task central banks face as they prepare to enter an era of institutional and modernization reforms arising from changes in government policies and changes in the global financial markets. for those of you who manage human resource, you may need to seek answers to the following questions : how will duties of central banks change with anticipated global development and global responsibilities? how have demands on central banks changed – nationally and expectation? what capabilities need to be built? what can human resource do to facilitate the desired changes and ensure central bank executives have the right set of skills at all levels? central banks ’ modernization to conform to the ever - changing business environment and benchmarking against best practice is no longer an option. these changes will continuously take central banks into new horizons that bring forth both opportunities and threats that we need to mitigate against. ladies and gentlemen : in april 2011, i presided over a similar conference organized by the indian institute of banking and finance. at that event, i acknowledged the importance of such platforms for enabling banks to not only share experiences, but also to exchange ideas on innovations and other emerging issues that require the preparation of bank staff to cope with the ever evolving trends in the global financial scene. i therefore challenged institutions with similar mandate to embrace such platforms as an avenue for bringing together hr practitioners and policy makers in the banking sector to share ideas on innovations that require proactive hr training and development. i am therefore very pleased that ksms together with the cmi took up the challenge to organize this symposium as a forum for participants to reflect and debate current and emerging hr challenges that are likely to impact on the performance and service delivery of central banks in the region. ladies and gentlemen : there are a number of salient hr issues that are of concern to central bank operations and performance in the 21st century. let me list them : 1.