in or out were we to see faster progress towards greater labour market flexibility elsewhere in europe. it may be argued that emu itself will act as a stimulus to reforms needed in fiscal policy, and in labour markets ; indeed that the prospect of emu is already doing so. we cautious, pragmatic, non - visionary people that we are - would like to see the needed reforms implemented first. these preparations, both in the financial and the real economies, are the preparations which prospective ‘ ins ’ need to make, in particular. but there are of course preparations in financial markets which apply to everyone. we are in no doubt that the introduction of the euro in 1999, if the current timetable is maintained, will have profound consequences for financial markets, initially for wholesale markets, and later for the retail financial sector too. it is incumbent on all central banks to seek to ensure that the financial markets in which they sit are as well prepared as they can be for this momentous change. we must also ensure that the central banks themselves are well prepared. at the bank of england we now have a steering group, which i chair, focused on preparing the bank itself. we have made a clear decision that the bank will be ready for uk membership of emu in january 1999, if a future government decides that that is the right course for the country. but our more important work in the short term is focused on preparing the city of london and on preparing the financial infrastructure which the city will need to maintain its position as the most innovative and dynamic financial market in europe. i should emphasise that we see the city as a financial market for the whole of europe, not just for the united kingdom. that explains why we are always ready to welcome overseas financial institutions to london, why we rigorously avoid discrimination on grounds of nationality in our financial market dealings, and why we have greatly welcomed the decisions by german, french and swiss banks in particular to concentrate many of their wholesale market activities in london in recent years. europe needs a broad and deep market like london to rival those in tokyo and new york. i would not wish, today, to talk at length about the preparations being made in the city for emu. partly because this afternoon, in london, we shall be releasing our latest quarterly report on practical issues arising from the introduction of the euro, which sets out in some detail the progress that has been made over the last three months, and how we propose to take things forward. in short, we

ground breaking ceremony of the new barclays bank zambia plc head office speech by dr. denny h. kalyalya governor – bank of zambia thursday, june 6, 2019 lusaka, zambia ground breaking ceremony of the new barclays bank zambia plc head office funded by the absa group limited, speech by dr. denny h. kalyalya, governor – bank of zambia – 6 june 2019 the absa group ceo, mr rene van wyk ; the director, bank supervision department, boz, ms. gladys mposha ; the director, economics department, boz, dr. francis chipimo ; the deputy group ceo and ceo absa regional operations, mr peter matlare ; deputy ceo, absa regional operations & chief operating officer absa cib, mr temi ofong ; the barclays bank zambia board chairperson, ms chishala kateka ; the barclays bank zambia managing director, mrs mizinga melu ; executives from absa group ; representatives from sunshare ; staff from boz ; management and staff of barclays bank zambia plc ; distinguished invited guests ; and members of the press. it is my great pleasure to officiate at this ground - breaking event of barclays bank zambia plc new head office. distinguished guests, the construction of the new head office for barclays bank zambia plc, which will be rebranded as absa bank zambia from next year, is a demonstration of the efforts and commitment by absa group limited to become a pan - african organisation, that is interested in the sustainable development of the financial sector and the economies of the countries they operate in. ladies and gentlemen, this event, also marks a new chapter for one of zambia ’ s oldest banks. barclays bank zambia has been in the country for over a century having opened its first branch in june 1918. today, the bank has a widespread presence across the country with 41 branches, 103 atms, and other digital service delivery channels. it employs in excess of 800 staff. distinguished guests, barclays bank zambia is one of the biggest banks in the zambian banking industry and plays a significant role in the market through the various products and services as just indicated. it is our expectation that absa group limited, the parent company of barclays bank zambia plc, will continue to build on the foundation and heritage that has been established over the last century. the bank is expected to remain a committed partner in driving financial sector development and supporting the country ’ s