##tracted approval procedures. ladies and gentlemen, a sound welfare system helps those who are hit particularly hard by structural change. but that alone is not enough. our aim must be to ensure that as many people as possible can grasp the opportunities presented by this change. the key here is education. • in the long run, it also plays a part in the economic prosperity of a society. • so when it comes to the future of our economy, education policy is just as vital as economic policy. people never stop learning – after school, their training, or their studies. we therefore need a culture of lifelong learning. the oecd has praised germany ’ s dual training system, highlighting the vital role that you, as entrepreneurs, play in the world of education. but it ’ s still not perfect. • out of all the oecd countries, the gap in training participation between high - and low - skilled workers is largest in germany. • digital education that provides young people with a firm technical grounding and strengthens their media skills is crucial. • in addition to schools with modern it equipment, this also requires sound educational programmes that prepare students for the digital world. • that said, an international comparison reveals that the digital skills of german schoolchildren are average at best. the share of young people with low computer literacy and it - related skills in germany is “ above average and worryingly high ”. for central banks like ours, a [UNK] level of general financial literacy is important – both for individuals and for the stability and smooth functioning of the financial system as a whole. [ 21 ] that ’ s why, during its g20 presidency, germany committed to improving the country ’ s pool of knowledge on these issues. 4 conclusion ladies and gentlemen, as you ’ ve no doubt come to realise, structural change provides plenty of topics for discussion and will leave no sector untouched. we all have ideas and views as to how structural change can succeed and lead to more growth without overwhelming society. when choosing alternatives, two things are necessary : • facts and information that support sound decision - making – both in business and in politics, but also • processes for weighing up the costs and benefits of measures and for learning from experience. cologne is the perfect example of how such processes have taken place time and again over the decades, and how solutions have been found. this has only been possible thanks to a combination of two factors : a spirit of innovation and an environment that facilitates it. thank you for listening, and

low. so how well equipped are we to rise to the structural change we will see over the next decade? what needs to be done to get to grips with demographic change, the challenges of going digital, and climate change? demographic change demographic change in germany is quite easy to predict. • the mid - 2020s are when we will begin to notice its impact far more clearly than hitherto – that is when the baby boom cohorts will start retiring. • this will reduce the number of people available to the labour market, dragging on potential growth. • the bundesbank estimates that potential growth – that is, trend growth with cyclical effects stripped out – will drop to just under 1 % during the course of the 2020s. a stronger supply of labour can counteract the decline in trend growth. improved childcare or nursing facilities, for example, can help boost labour market participation. but at the end of the day, a broader approach is called for – one that makes germany an altogether more attractive place to do business and fosters more innovation. climate change climate change is another factor that might have longer - term repercussions for the economy, not least because extreme weather events like heatwaves, hurricanes and torrential rainfall are becoming more common. • innovation and sound technological ideas are urgently needed if we are to cope with the effects of climate change. so you could say that climate change is two things : an opportunity and a risk for the economy. • to rise to the challenge of adapting to climate change, reliable framework conditions will have to be put in place. european commission president ursula von der leyen presented her plan for a european “ green deal ” in december. • her proposal is to make europe the first climate - neutral continent by 2050. • the path towards that goal will also see the eu raise its climate targets for 2030, by which time greenhouse gas emissions would be cut from 1990 levels by at least 50 %. all that remains is the question of “ how ”. nobel prize winner william nordhaus called it an “ inconvenient truth ” : for climate policy to be effective, there is no avoiding putting a price on carbon emissions. the use of fossil fuels such as coal and oil has to be made more expensive – so far, no adequate price has been paid. thus, a good climate policy corrects prices and enhances the functioning of the market economy over the longer term. right now, it ’ s practically impossible to come