chairman, the effects of these nefarious activities on financial institutions and their stakeholders as well as on the national economy can be devastating and the vulnerability of banks to such fraud has been heightened by technological advancements. its economic cost can be huge in terms of its disruption of the workings of the market, financial institutions, and the payment system. besides, fraud can be a very potent force in terms of its impact on confidence in the banking system ; damages to the integrity and stability of the economy ; it can collapse banks ( like bcci and ghana co - operative bank ), undermine the central bank ’ s supervisory role and even create social unrest and discontent and political upheavals for government. the pyram and resources 5 ( r5 ) episodes in the late 1990s testify to this. the negative list of financial fraud can be endless. it is for this reason that some commentators have concluded that “ fraud prevention is as important as prudential supervisions ”. mr. chairman, since ghana ’ s independence in 1957, the key organs of the state, namely policymakers, law - makers and the courts as well as the financial regulators have taken various measures within their respective spheres of power to deal with all forms of fraudulent activities. some of the measures taken include : • the passing of the criminal code, 1960 ( act 29 ), as amended, to deal with fraud, dud cheques, forgery, etc. ; • the internal revenue act, 2000 ( act 592 ) that controls tax evasion ; • customs, excise and preventive services ( management ) act 1993 ( pndcl. 30 ) which concerns evasion of duties ; the banking act, 2004 ( act 673 ) that contains some provisions intended to prevent bank fraud ; and the serious fraud office act, 1993 ( act 466 ) empowers sfo to monitor, investigate and prosecute offences involving serious financial or economic loss to the state, where the state has an interest in the entity. within the last decade or so the nature and methods of financial fraud in ghana and globally have changed, as a result of the advent of new criminal activities and new technology which facilitates easier and faster transfer of laundered money, that could be used to finance suspicious activities. at the executive / legislative and the central bank levels, new moves have been taken to combat financial fraud. at the governmental level for example new laws have been passed to deal with the new challenges. the laws include : the public procurement

promoting disciplined macroeconomic policies, with the budget and monetary policy playing complementary roles to promote growth with stability. monetary policy is most effective when the public is willing to hold and use the currencies introduced by the bank as legal tender and as a store of their wealth because of confidence that the value will be stable over time – the value is the same – and by implication prices will remain fairly stable as well. but the key here is the credibility of macroeconomic policies. at the time of independence, the banking industry consisted of 3 banks. this has grown over the years to 23 banks with a network of some 600 branches, 123 rural banks, 13 savings and loans companies, as we celebrate this golden jubilee. these operate alongside an array of non - bank financial institutions, insurance companies, and other micro - credit institutions. we now have a banking industry that is reasonably competitive and well capitalized, sound and liquid, having withstood the pressures of rapid disinflation over the past years. your excellency, as we look forward, the bank of ghana has a responsibility to promote the development of a financial system that is effectively integrated and in tune with the global financial market ; and that is capable of providing a diversified range of financial instruments and services to support a dynamic growing economy. the bank is building the nucleus of a payments system infrastructure and a financial system that can develop over time into a vibrant segment of the international financial industry in the west african region, a financial centre of global standards in terms of the quality and incentives built into the regulatory environment, financial institutions and the services they can deliver. this positioning of the industry is even more important in the context where the entire ecowas regional market may well come under a common currency regime, and become a single economic space ; with free mobility of capital, goods and services, and labour. the future of the financial sector should be one that is vibrant and well anchored in price and financial stability, better to serve as a pillar for economic growth towards achieving the millennium development goals and middle income status. this is the theme of the symposium organised as part of these celebrations. your excellency, the quality of public institutions, and for that matter the public service, is an important determinant of the financial sophistication of the state ; and the central bank – the bank of ghana – has a pivotal role in pioneering the process. ghana @ 50 – the nation ’ s golden jubilee – had the theme “ championing african excellence ”