ashraf mahmood wathra : strengthening pakistan ’ s economy and financial services speech by mr ashraf mahmood wathra, governor of the state bank of pakistan, on independence day, karachi, 14 august 2015. * * * ladies and gentlemen, assalam - o - alaikum, it is my pleasure and honour to speak to you on the 69th independence day of pakistan. first of all, i congratulate you. the day is celebrated in the memory of those leaders who rendered innumerable sacrifices for the liberty of the nation from shackles of slavery. it was their untiring struggle and perseverance which delivered the fruit of independence for the muslims of the subcontinent. the muslims of the subcontinent followed the call of the quaid - e - azam muhammad ali jinnah and the dream of a new homeland became a reality at a time when it seemed almost impossible to win it. pakistan was created for lofty ideals. to win freedom was the first step in that direction. the real freedom means achieving the goal of becoming a self - reliant nation – one that is able to guard her interests and promote her values. freedom will really be freedom only when we follow the principles taught by our founding fathers and remain united in confronting the challenges the country faces in its move towards growth shared by all pakistanis. it is our collective responsibility to play our roles to transform pakistan into a strong, prosperous and thriving country. this may require some sacrifices on our part but if we keep the principles taught by our great leaders in mind, we will have the vision to see that such sacrifices effect great advancement for the future of a nation. a strong economic system based on strong institutions is the key to progress. no nation can hope to grow without a robust financial system and powerful economy. despite challenges pakistan managed established a central bank and a viable economic system early on. although our economy has had many rises and falls and has sometimes seen crises, i believe there is still enormous potential for growth and the economy is now headed in the right direction. on this auspicious occasion the state bank is launching its five - year strategic plan. we have titled this plan sbp vision 2020. the plan has devised by the management and officers of the sbp after months of ceaseless work. sbp vision 2020 has been developed through a participative and consultative process. sbp took the vision 2025 into account. moreover, as a part of the process, surveys

. adil salahuddin who has donated a valuable collection to state bank. it gives me immense pleasure to acknowledge the contribution of mr. adil salahuddin, who is recipient of sitara - e - imtiaz and president ’ s pride of performance award. he played an important role in the design process of stamps and currency notes in pakistan as well as abroad. sbp is launching the collection of mr. adil salahuddin on this auspicious occasion of our independence day. at the end, i would like to say that the state bank of pakistan is one of the few institutions that are the pride of the country. in spite of hazards and challenges, it has made great strides towards the goal of taking the economy to new heights. our vibrant banking industry is an example of the unremitting efforts that the past and present employees of the sbp have been making. we still have a long way to move forward. there are many, many milestones that remain for us to conquer. let us make a firm resolve today that we will live up to the ideals of the quaid - e - azam and further our efforts to achieve the ends for which the state bank of pakistan was established. bis central bankers ’ speeches