home countries. chairperson, an additional adverse effect of the global financial crisis on our economies has been on direct foreign investment s as many projects have either been suspended or cancelled. this has been due to a failure by many investors to raise funds as a result of unfavourable conditions in international financial markets. other investors are pulling out their interests from africa in a bid to save money and improve their liquidity for working capital purposes back home where liquidity has been a serious issue. in zambia, the effects of the global financial crisis have been generally felt in our mining industry, securities market, and the external sector of the economy. the drop in copper prices has led some mines closing while other have been placed on care and maintenance with massive job losses while the mining subsectors and mining related industries have also seen loss of jobs. the tourism industry is adversely affected with low occupancy rates while the horticulture industry has also recorded losses due to low export volumes as result of low demand and low commodity prices of vegetables and fresh flowers in european markets. the exchange rate has also come under severe pressure as foreign exchange inflows declined reflecting the deterioration in the balance of payments position. this is partly a consequence of reduced earnings from copper exports arising from the fall in copper prices. further, the weakness of the local currency is a consequence of increased risk aversion to emerging and developing economy financial assets. chairperson, the challenges arising from the global financial and economic crisis are huge but surmountable. major economies of the world are putting in place various stimulus packages, which are expected to take the world economy out of the crisis. without doubt, these measures will benefit emerging and developing economies as well, provided that were main committed to pursuing strong socio - economic policies. i urge all of us here present to be part of the solution and contribute to the economic recovery and prosperity of this continent. it is also important that we incorporate policy issues arising from this seminar in our domestic policy processes and thereby enrich such processes by taking into consideration regional perspectives. the challenge going forward is how to maintain and sustain the economic gains and macroeconomic stability in our countries. there is need to encourage diversification and enhance competitiveness by increasing expenditure on infrastructure and social services. we need to continue to encourage investment in our economies that will lead to a diversified export base and a greater local value addition. for monetary authorities, there is need to continue to closely monitor global developments and always stand ready to take appropriate measures in

the visayas region, the security thread of the 200piso banknote changes colors from green to blue. lastly, the 100 - piso was designed after an indigenous textile from the bicol region and with colors that shift from violet to bronze. all these banknotes also have three - dimensional and holographic features. in addition, the 1000 - piso and the 500 - piso banknotes feature design elements that use optically variable ink, which enables change in color when viewed at a different angle. the value panels of these two banknotes were added with a rolling - bar effect when tilted from left to right, and vice versa. finally, a distinct security feature will help us achieve our mission of bringing bsp closer to filipinos. we added tactile marks to the banknotes specifically intended to help the elderly and 1 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches visually impaired to quickly identify the value or denomination of the banknote. pairs of short horizontal bands are printed in intaglio or engraved at the extreme right and left sides of the note. a 1000 - piso has five pairs of this tactile mark ; the 500 - piso will have four pairs ; three pairs for the 200 - piso ; two pairs for the 100 - piso ; while a 50 - piso will have one pair of tactile marks. through this distinguishing feature, the elderly and the visually impaired will be more confident in using the banknotes for their transactions, paving the way for financial inclusion. needless to say, our banknotes are the treasure of our nation — as we always remind the filipino public, “ ingatan natin ang ating salapi, salamin ito ng ating yamang lahi. ” let us all do our part in preserving and safeguarding its value. maraming salamat at magandang hapon sa ating lahat! 2 / 2 bis central bankers'speeches