. it is therefore pleasing to know that fiji is keeping up there with the global trend. what is fijiclear? what is fijiclear? fijiclear enables the processing of payments to be done as and when they happen – hence the term “ real time ”. it is an electronic way of making payments within a country and getting immediate settlement of those payments. in simple terms it means that instead of waiting for several days for funds to be available for use, the receiving party or beneficiary will have funds in their account within one business day or in some cases almost instantaneously. similarly, the party making the payment is assured of safe and immediate delivery of those funds. the key elements of fijiclear are speed, certainty, reliability, safety and security, convenience and cost. the system is for the transfer and settlement of fiji dollar denominated funds only. it enables payments instructions to be processed and settled individually and continuously throughout the working day. all settled transactions are considered as final and irrevocable. thus the receiver will be able to use the funds immediately without being exposed to the risk of the funds not being settled. this is in contrast to the previous manual system which operated on a deferred net settlement system, where payments are processed throughout the day but the actual entries are only affected at the end of the day. benefits fijiclear there are a number of benefits of using fijiclear. i had pointed out already the wider benefits to the economy and the financial system. to the payee i. e. the person receiving money, the benefits include : • funds are credited into the account straight away. so there is no waiting of 3 - 7 days for funds to be cleared when using a cheque ; • there is time savings as one does not have to physically visit a bank to deposit cheque ; • there is no uncertainty of any dishonoured cheques with the associated charges and loss of income ; • immediate crediting of account means that any overdraft limit is reduced and hence lower interest charges ; • immediate crediting of funds will help in cash flow ; and • reduced overhead or staff cost as there is less paper work. there are also benefits to the payer i. e. those making the payment : • there is less risk of transporting cheques ; • there is savings in time and charges ; and • there is better business relationship with creditors. i therefore strongly encourage businesses as well as individuals to use this modern

creation, because it maintains purchasing power and boosts the confidence of savers and investors. price stability in itself isn ’ t enough, but it is necessary. some people in france criticise you for favouring the fight against inflation, to the detriment of growth … ask the french people what they think! 63 million french, along with everyone else in the euro area – 319 million altogether – ask us to ensure price stability. it ’ s what the opinion polls say. our fellow - citizens have entrusted us with this task by approving the treaty of maastricht. they pay close attention to the european central bank ensuring price stability, which permits the preservation of purchasing power and fosters sustainable growth and employment. the french themselves have been historically very attached to price stability, to monetary stability. it is true of all the great national sensitivities. it ’ s not by chance that the major symbolic figures of right and left – in particular, general de gaulle and pierre mendesfrance – were very attached to monetary stability. so all is well? much progress has been made, but we still have a lot to do in europe, and also in france, as the governor of the banque de france said in his most recent letter. unemployment is still far too high, even if we have the lowest level for 26 years. it ’ s why we are supporting the efforts being made by all the european governments to embark on structural reforms. structural reforms … what does that mean? to put this quite simply, it means making the economy more flexible and more competitive. a flexible economy is an economy which constantly adapts, one which is capable of taking advantage of technological progress, of the opportunities offered by the changes taking place in the global economy. the economies which are more flexible have more growth and more jobs for themselves and their children. in europe today, it ’ s the more flexible economies which have achieved full employment. you must be pleased to see new eu countries wanting to join the euro? it ’ s true, being numerous in the euro area allows us to have a large continental economy that is stable and prosperous. our responsibility, i. e. that of the executive board and the governing council of the ecb, is to give the best possible monetary policy to our vast single economy with a single currency, which is comparable with the united states. cyprus and malta will join us as from 1 january 2008. the euro area will have then 320 million inhabitants and 15 countries.