harvesh seegolam : bank of mauritius financial literacy strategy speech by mr harvesh seegolam, governor of the bank of mauritius, at the launch of the bank of mauritius financial literacy strategy 2022 and the second edition of the bank of mauritius thought leadership series on financial literacy in a digital era, port louis, 28 january 2022. * * * ms flore - anne messy, executive secretary of the oecd international network on financial education deputy governors members of my advisory panel, dr vera songwe, dr robert wardrop and mr john cusack ceos of banks and financial institutions attending this event either physically or virtually managers and heads of financial institutions operating in rodrigues members of the media viewers following us live on social media ladies and gentlemen i wish you all a very good afternoon. it is a great pleasure for me to welcome you to the launch of the 2022 bank of mauritius financial literacy strategy which we are rolling out today on a national basis, and to the second edition of the bank of mauritius thought leadership series. the theme for the round table discussion that will ensue is ‘ financial literacy in a digital era ’. our eminent panellists, who are also members of the bank of mauritius advisory committee, will be providing us with their unique insights on the importance of financial literacy, and how to best implement related strategies in mauritius. i wish to announce that the bank ’ s advisory committee has two new members, namely mr john cusack who is an authority on combatting financial crime, and mr robert ophele, chairperson of the autorite des marches financiers of france and former deputy governor of the banque de france. given the importance of the subject matter, it could not have been more fitting to hold this event in the very year in which the bank is turning 55. the unprecedented environment in which we continue to operate, and which is marked by the shadow of the covid - 19 pandemic, magnifies the pertinence of today ’ s event. i would not do justice to the significance of the financial literacy strategy being launched today if i fail to highlight the dangers of financial illiteracy. indeed, a lack of financial literacy inevitably results in implementation of poor financial decisions, thereby dragging down the quality of life of citizens, and severely impacting the very efficiency of our banking and financial systems. ladies and gentlemen, we cannot speak about financial literacy without taking heed of how past events have played a major

regulated entities should ensure that employees understand that their primary responsibility is to serve customers'financial needs. there should be clear and transparent incentive structures that reward employees for delivering quality financial advice and services rather than just making sales. staff should ensure that products are recommended based on the customer's financial situation, goals, and risk tolerance. towards this, every financial institution should have a policy for customer appropriateness and product suitability framework. by adhering to such a policy framework in letter and spirit, res can greatly reduce the mis - selling complaints which form a substantial portion of the complaints that we get to see. addressing the root cause of customer complaints in order to truly embrace customer centricity, we must delve into the root causes of customer complaints. complaints are not mere inconveniences but vital feedback. as bill gates said, " your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning. " 1 they point us toward areas needing improvement. by addressing these root causes, we can prevent complaints from arising in the first place. i would therefore urge you to have a proactive approach in identifying root causes. regular analysis of customer feedback, complaints, and suggestions can serve as an invaluable compass in navigating toward a service - oriented future. root cause analysis will not only allow rectification of individual grievances but also enhance systemic processes to prevent reoccurrence. i would urge the customer service committees to allocate adequate time and focus on discussing the outcome of such root cause analysis to ensure that the institutions put in place mechanisms that can prevent recurrence of such complaints. it has also come to our notice that some of the banks have adopted an innovative approach to classify certain complaints as queries which results in understating the problem. this results in a false sense of complacency, and the truth will be out in any case. we seek to disincentivise such practices and as a regulator, we will not hesitate to act in case if it turns out to be an entity wide behaviour. i, therefore, request the customer service committees to keep a close watch and guard against such practices. resolution at the point of first contact every customer grievance is also an opportunity to prove our commitment to service excellence. therefore, it is essential that customer complaints are addressed promptly and fairly through a robust and efficient complaint resolution process. regulated entities should empower their customer facing staff to resolve issues at the point of first contact. the objective