harvesh seegolam : banking resilience - global and domestic perspectives keynote address by mr harvesh seegolam, governor of the bank of mauritius, on the maiden edition of the bank of mauritius thought leadership series on “ banking resilience : global and domestic perspectives ”, 23 july 2021. * * * first deputy governor second deputy governor chairman of omfif members of the bank of mauritius advisory committee chairperson and ceo of the mauritius bankers association ceos of banks ladies and gentlemen a very good morning and afternoon, depending from where you are joining us today. it is my pleasure to welcome you all to this maiden edition of the bank of mauritius thought leadership series. an initiative that the bank is bringing to the banking community and other stakeholders in general, on topical matters in this fast changing world in which we are today living. i wish to thank the omfif for partnering with the bank of mauritius for this inaugural edition. the bank ’ s thought leadership series will allow us to gain from the precious insights of worldacclaimed experts and personalities on key topics impacting, directly or indirectly, the banking and financial world. it will serve as an ongoing platform to generate ideas on how we need to adapt or re - adapt ourselves and our value propositions. this becomes even more important for highly open small - island economies, like mauritius, dependent on tourism and financial services. the bank of mauritius will make its thought leadership series a regular feature on topical matters. our choice of the theme for the debut of the thought leadership series – banking sector resilience : global and domestic perspectives – is explained by the importance of preserving stability and resilience of the banking and financial system amidst the global covid - 19 pandemic that has struck us since march last year. as a matter of coincidence, i started my governorship at the bank of mauritius with the outbreak of the pandemic. this theme is attracting significant attention globally. the bis, imf, oecd, omfif and many central bankers are relentlessly reflecting on how best to maintain stability and resilience of the banking sector. i am more than determined to continuously engage with our international partners as well as our local stakeholders in this ongoing reflection exercise. my objective has been to ensure that our banking and financial system stands the test of this unprecedented crisis that mauritius is facing. maintaining trust and confidence in the banking sector is a very high priority on my agenda. the more so that sound banks

forward to interactive discussions from ceos of all banks present in this room. i have also taken note with satisfaction that the entire banking industry is following this discussion today through virtual means. for our first edition of the bank of mauritius thought leadership series, i would like to thank our panellists also. we are indeed privileged to have with us professor the lord mervyn king, dr vera songwe, dr natacha valla, dr robert wardrop and mr daniel essoo. i also thank mr david marsh, chairman of the omfif who has kindly accepted to moderate today ’ s panel discussion. on this note, i wish you all successful deliberations. ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your attention. 3 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches