a case for expanding access of quality and affordable financial services and products to majority of the population. access to finance will encourage savings and credit. this will effect savings / investments cycle, allowing for capital accumulation and asset building which enables the poor to escape poverty. safe havens for savings by the poor reduce their vulnerability to periodic economic and social shocks. access to finance will expand the level of participants and so lower unit costs. ladies and gentlemen : our efforts to ensure expanded financial access have been measured by three national financial access surveys for 2006, 2009 and 2013. these surveys have clearly demonstrated that kenya ’ s financial landscape has considerably changed over the period 2006 – 2013. the financial system is now offering a wider range of financial services and products to more kenyans, covering a wider geographical spread, and even going beyond kenyan borders. this has strengthened the banks and created a wider market. these developments are a bis central bankers ’ speeches testimony to the strength and vibrancy of our banking sector it has contributed to kenya ’ s financial development. • enhancing the efficiency of the financial system has an immediate impact on the welfare of its customers and the wider real economy through the consequent reduction of costs of financial services. competition is essential in ensuring that financial institutions are incentivised to invest in improving productivity, efficiency and cost effectiveness. the cbk has acted to encourage greater transparency in pricing of financial services and products to foster effective competition and delivery of services to majority of kenyans. • on the financial stability front, the government has continued to implement necessary reforms designed to strengthen the legal, regulatory and supervisory framework in to ensure stability of the financial system. lessons from the 2008 – 2009 global financial crisis call for regulators to invest in better regulation. better regulations is characterised by a regulatory framework with ability to : − readily identify weaknesses and emerging vulnerabilities ; − analyse and price risks ; − provide appropriate incentives ( and penalties ) to induce prudent behaviour in the market place ; and − encourage innovations and develop strong institutions of the regulators and the regulated – strong institutions enforce the rules of the game and define appropriate incentives. ladies and gentlemen : i am delighted to note that the finaccess survey, 2013 results bears witness to the above gains made in enhancing the reach and coverage of financial services to kenyans. it shows that the proportion of the adult population using formal financial services rose to 66. 7 % in 2013 from 27. 4 % and 41. 3 % in 2006 and 2009, respectively

landscape, for instance, has a number of ostensible implications for financial inclusion and access but requires concerted efforts of all regulatory bodies, including those overseeing fintechs, techfins and telcos, so as to avoid regulatory capture and regulatory arbitrage. there is a growing interest in participating in the activities of the 2 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches rce. it has, so far, conducted 10 workshops and trained over 2, 800 participants around the globe. my key message here, ladies and gentlemen, is that we are no longer living in a microcosmic world but in a heavily interconnected one. actions in one jurisdiction have wide - ranging and far - reaching cross - border implications for other jurisdictions. as such, regulatory excellence in a jurisdiction cannot be achieved on a stand - alone basis without being mindful of these potential cross - border externalities. that is why knowledge exchange, as well as information dissemination and collaboration between different jurisdictions become a sacrosanct exercise. to illustrate, sustaining efforts to tackle corruption and financial crimes so as to uphold the financial integrity of a jurisdiction has become a policy priority for many jurisdictions worldwide. however, as the case of mauritius illustrates when the country exited the high - risk lists of a number of international institutions, this can only be effectively discharged through a collaborative approach among all stakeholders within and across jurisdictions. i would therefore encourage regulators from the region to continue leveraging on the unique opportunity offered by the rce as the fulcrum for capacity - building, knowledge transfer and advocacy in fields that they are privy to. ladies and gentlemen, the governing board remains committed to providing the jurisdiction and the region with the appropriate human resources, expertise and guidance to improve the soundness and resilience of our financial systems. in fact, the signature ceremony is being accompanied by a two - day hybrid workshop on " promoting good corporate governance " covering inter - alia the g20 / oecd principles of corporate governance and sustainability. i am sure that each one of you present here today will agree that a sound corporate governance framework is the linchpin for the effective functioning of any organization. this is even more critical in the financial services industry dealing with massive funds. history is littered with examples of failures of institutions, including venerable ones, due to poor corporate governance practices. our governance structure needs constant adaptation to changes to ensure its continued relevance. it cannot be a one - size - fits - all approach. i am happy to see that