crisis management policy aimed to contain and overcome its effects, but, to a large extent, it has been conditioned by some of the constraints i mentioned before. monetary policy took the lead in providing countercyclical stimulus to the economy, with the ecb rapidly lowering its policy rate and injecting huge amounts of short and long term liquidity. lastly, the announcement in september of the outright monetary transactions by the ecb has been a turning point in regaining the trust of the financial markets. on the other hand, given the lack of space for stimulating fiscal policies, the public sector has been more interested in controlling long - term public debt trajectories, subtracting rather than adding to economic stimulus. to this end, the agreed fiscal compact and macroeconomic surveillance policies aim to put the eurozone public finances into a sound and credible longterm footing. on the financial side, the eu has revised its financial architecture by establishing the efsf ( european financial stability fund ) and european stability mechanism, by agreeing to establish a single banking system supervisor. lastly, there have been several structural measures undertaken, aiming to revive both the eu and countryspecific competitiveness. among others, these measures include increasing labor market flexibility, reforming the pension system, further liberalizations in the goods and services markets. what remains to be done? while arguably late, i think the policy response within the eu has gone in the right direction and has been rather comprehensive. nevertheless, further work is required in the future. bis central bankers ’ speeches i would like to highlight two of these areas. - first, the reform agenda identified by four presidents ( of the european council, of the european commission, of the eurogroup and of the ecb ) aims to complement the monetary union with a financial union, a fiscal union, an economic union and some higher degree of political union. this is an ambitious goal, but i am fairly convinced it will be accomplished within a reasonable time - scale. in this context, it is not much a wish list as it is a prerequisite for long term growth. it would indicate to the world that europe has answered the dilemma about its role in the global economy of the 21st century. - second, i think that efforts to increase eu integration should extend to include a deeper cooperation with candidate and potential candidate countries in the eastern and southeastern europe. these economies are very much connected to the eu, from an economic and financial perspective. they have undertaken structural reforms to liberalize

facilitate the digitalization, in terms of payments and other services, such as lending and investments, contributing significantly to the common objective for a formalised and sustainable economic growth. i also assess that by exploring the experiences of our neighbours and beyond, we can identify additional measures that will promote the formalization of the economy and reduce the use of cash in the economy. i would like to end my speech by expressing once again the full commitment of the bank of albania to support any necessary development, in order to achieve the intended objectives. i take this opportunity to congratulate the albanian association of banks for its huge and longstanding work, in boosting and supporting every project, initiative or need identified by the market and more broadly. your dedication and professionalism has contributed very effectively, in fully accomplishing the intermediation role between the parties, while also serving as a catalyst to promote the achievement of objectives. i am convinced that the discussions of this forum will be very fruitful in these areas and in addressing rather important issues. thank you! 3 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches