cent of investment in the country during this period was financed by the domestic savings. on the price stability front, india's performance has been fairly good. since independence, the inflation rate, in terms of the wholesale price index ( wpi ), on an average basis, was above 15 per cent in only five out of fifty years. in thirty - six out of fifty years, inflation was in single digit and on most occasions high inflation was due to shocks – food or oil. the tolerance level to inflation has been low, relative to many developing countries, especially on account of the democratic pressures in the country. the inflation rate accelerated steadily from an annual average of 1. 7 per cent during the 1950s to 6. 4 percent during the 1960s and further to 9. 0 per cent in the 1970s before easing marginally to 8. 0 per cent in the 1980s. however, the inflation rate declined from an average of 11. 0 per cent during 199095 to 5. 3 per cent during the second half of the 1990s ( 1995 - 2000 ) and further to 4. 9 per cent during 2003 - 07. more recently during 2006 - 07, wpi based inflation rate increased from 4. 1 per cent at the end of march 2006 to an intra - year peak of 6. 7 per cent at end - january 2007 and remained firm in the range of 6. 1 - 6. 6 per cent in the succeeding weeks before moderating to 5. 9 per cent by the end of the financial year ( i. e., as on march 31, 2007 ). since then, the inflation has further moderated and as on june 16, 2007, the wpi inflation rate was 4. 0 per cent. in recent period, there has been considerable improvement in the fiscal position. the average gross fiscal deficit of the central government as per cent to gdp during the decade of 1980s was 6. 8 per cent as against 3. 8 per cent in the 1970s. the government of india is pursuing the path of rule - based fiscal consolidation from the year 2004 - 05 under the fiscal responsibility and budget management act, 2003 whereunder time - specific targets have been mandated. the underlying purpose of the targets is to reduce the ratio of gross fiscal deficit ( gfd ) to gross domestic product ( gdp ) to three per cent by 2008 - 09. furthermore, the revenue deficit ( rd ) to gdp ratio has been targeted to touch 0. 0 per cent by 2008 - 09 so that borrowed resources

gent sejko : the importance of studying technological and demographic developments disrupting labour, finance and markets welcome remarks by mr gent sejko, governor of the bank of albania, at the 13th see economic research workshop, tirana, 5 december 2019. * * * dear ambassador maitre, dear guests and speakers from academia, central banks and research institutions, dear participants, it is a great pleasure for me to open the proceedings of the 13th see economic research workshop, in which we present and open for discussion research projects undertaken by the bank of albania in the current year, and have the opportunity to get feedback from colleagues from academia, central banks and research institutions worldwide. this is a very important event for the bank of albania, since all the projects that will be discussed during the two days of the workshop are designed to help the analysis, decision making and implementation in the areas of monetary policy and financial stability as well as other central bank aspects. based on this careful formal analysis, our policies have been successful in preserving monetary, macroeconomic and financial stability. despite hardships, our economy has registered positive growth rates, and our banking system ’ s performance has been stable. the banking sector is well capitalized and profitable, non - performing loans have decreased and banks continue to support economic activity with credit, while managing potential shocks originated from the external sector of the economy. the agenda is rich and covers the most important areas of research related to traditional central bank activity. in these two days, discussions will focus on monetary policy, financial stability, economic modelling and forecasting, risk assessment and management, which are all traditional instruments in the central bank toolkit and need to be improved constantly. it is very important to note that, in addition to these traditional topics, the workshop will discuss research in new and important areas such as : digitalization of financial services, structural reforms, healthcare and its implication for central bank objectives and national welfare. technological developments disrupting traditional labour, financial products and markets, and demographic developments may impose some of the most important challenges to our societies and institutions. therefore, it is important to study and adequately understand these phenomena. in addition, we are glad and eager to discuss research findings from a number of authors who come from academia, central banks and other research institutions. the ideas and methodologies that are embedded in their research will introduce our researchers and economists to new ideas, will help them extend their research agenda, and will reveal potential opportunities of cooperation in the future. i believe that