barry whiteside : regulation and supervision of non - bank microfinance institutions opening speech by mr barry whiteside, acting governor of the reserve bank of fiji, at the regional off - site & on - site technical workshop on non bank microfinance institutions, suva, 12 – 14 april 2011. * * * my fellow governors, mr. denton rarawa ( cbsi ) and mr. loi bakani ( bpng ) central bank representatives from the region mr. tillman bruett, regional financial inclusion advisor and project manager, pacific financial inclusion programme mr deva de silva, senior operations officer, international finance corporation workshop facilitators mr. mark flaming and dr. mohamed nasir fellow colleagues from the reserve bank of fiji ladies and gentlemen introductory remarks bula vinaka to you all. it is with great pleasure that i welcome you all to suva for the first regional technical workshop on regulation and supervision of non bank microfinance institutions. it is an honor to help host this very important workshop that brings together regulators from around the region who are interested in the microfinance and financial inclusion agenda. microfinance and financial inclusion have become very topical issues on the global agenda, and a priority in many developing countries. it has been acknowledged that inclusive financial systems, where people regardless of income level, have easy access to various financial services, are critical for a country ’ s sustainable long term economic growth. in the region and in our individual countries we can attest that there are still significant numbers of our people excluded from basic financial services. in this regard, our active role in financial systems regulation, reform and policy development is important to set the scene and successfully implant the microfinance and financial inclusion agenda in our countries. an important element of inclusive finance is the institutions directly involved in extending financial services to the financially excluded. most of these institutions may operate outside the boundaries of central banks ’ regulatory and supervisory scope. in this workshop you will get to learn and devise practical approaches and methods that can be designed and adopted to effectively regulate such institutions. i wish to acknowledge the support and funding of the alliance for financial inclusion ( afi ), the pacific financial inclusion programme ( pfip ) and the international finance corporation ( ifc ), whose kind assistance have made this regional workshop possible. regulation and supervision of fiji ’ s financial system in fiji, the reserve bank is responsible for regulating and supervising the local financial system. this consists of the banking, insurance,

: info @ rbf. gov. fj website : www. rbf. gov. fj reserve bank of fiji develop and promote sustainable business models that support communities ’ response to climate change under the maya declaration and issuing sovereign green bonds – a world first for an emerging market. i also encourage you to use the financial pages in the diary to record your daily expenses as it will help you develop the habit of tracking and assessing your financial decisions to better plan for a sustainable future. i wish to take this opportunity to acknowledge the continued commitment of all the teachers to your personal development. to the students, my advice to you is to continue asking questions. be inquisitive and further your learning whenever possible. your teachers play a key role in giving you the necessary guidance to help you develop your financial literacy but it is up to you to make the most of your opportunities. conclusion i hope you will find this year ’ s student diary both useful and engaging. i encourage you to use it well and develop yourselves to become not just financially responsible but environmentally - conscious. remember that a concerted effort is required to ensure a sustainable future for us and our planet, therefore every bit that you do counts. finally, i would like to wish the teachers and students all the very best for the new academic year. may you flourish always, thank you! end private mail bag, suva, fiji tel : ( 679 ) 331 3611 fax : ( 679 ) 330 2094 email : info @ rbf. gov. fj website : www. rbf. gov. fj