jean - claude trichet : interview in die zeit interview with mr jean - claude trichet, president of the european central bank, in die zeit, germany, conducted by mr mark schieritz on 9 february 2011 and published on 16 february 2011. * * * die zeit : mr trichet, you ’ ve been tirelessly battling this euro crisis for quite some time now, and yet it ’ s still not over. jean - claude trichet : there is no euro crisis. the currency has retained its value very well and is credible and remarkably stable – not just in one country, but in the euro area as a whole. our problem is that the fiscal policies of some member countries have not been sound and that some countries are also lacking in competitiveness. zeit : what needs to happen? trichet : here in europe, we have an economic and monetary union. we at the european central bank take care of the monetary union ; it is up to politicians to very significantly improve the functioning of the economic union. the member countries have to do their homework. we ’ ve always demanded this, and there is no longer any excuse for sitting back and doing nothing. zeit : that ’ s precisely why angela merkel has proposed her “ pact for greater competitiveness ”. trichet : we do not yet know what exactly this pact comprises. if its aim is to improve the functioning of the economic union through greater coordination and integration, we will support it. ironically, however, we are already talking about this new pact, while the countries of the euro area are, at the same time, still discussing the reform of their stability and growth pact and the other elements of economic governance. zeit : … which, among other things, set upper limits for national budget deficits... trichet : and these reforms are, in our view, not ambitious enough. the proposals made by the european commission went in the right direction, but were already not ambitious enough in our view. and the member states – including germany, france and other countries – have watered them down further. our message is clear : we have to go as far as possible in reinforcing european economic governance, at all levels. we won ’ t give up on that. zeit : calls for more europe aren ’ t going down that well with the public. is europe really ready for greater integration? trichet : we have to tirelessly explain to people in the 17 countries of the euro

sub - sector in the years ahead. the microfinance sub - sector has achieved rapid growth. the sector has opened a branch network of 44 branches which had mobilised 0. 8 million deposit accounts valued at ksh. 8. 59 billion and advanced loans amounting to ksh. 16. 6 billion as at 28th february 2011. the licensing of smep dtm is therefore another milestone towards the development of an all inclusive financial system in kenya as envisaged by kenya ’ s economic blue print vision 2030. ladies and gentlemen : over the past few years, the central bank of kenya in addition to licensing and regulating deposit taking microfinance institutions has embraced policy reforms to build an adequate financial infrastructure to support the development and deepening of the financial sector. innovative models such as agent banking and credit information sharing aimed at scaling up financial inclusion are some recent examples. these initiatives are guided by cbk ’ s resolve as a regulator to advise, form partnerships, develop and regulate the market with an aim of enhancing access and reducing the cost of doing business in financial services. i am happy to note that according to the finaccess report of 2009, access to financial services improved with access to mfis service doubling from 1. 7 % in 2006 to 3. 4 % in 2009, bis central bankers ’ speeches the picture has changed drastically by now. these improvements, however small, are an indication that financial sector transformations and reforms being undertaken based on the three pillars of stability, efficiency and access are translating into increased financial inclusion and consequently spreading financial services to the poor. financial inclusion actors globally, like cbk, believe that poverty can be reduced sustainably and consistently with access to finance. access to finance allows the poor to develop a savings base and enlarge their asset base that supports them to ride over shocks and escape poverty. ladies and gentlemen : the licensing of smep dtm progresses the financial inclusion initiatives. the central bank is focused on addressing entry barriers for unbanked and underbanked kenyans to access financial services. it is our belief that we will scale up financial inclusion through reducing barriers to entry and lowering transaction costs through these initiatives. in turn, these initiatives continue to support a rolling out of financial services and products as well as increasing the delivery channels. it is expected that microfinance institutions will address any entry barriers by focusing on areas that have not been well served by mainstream financial institutions by offering demand - driven, affordable and convenient products. ladies and gentlemen