zeti akhtar aziz : unlocking finance, expanding impact keynote address by dr zeti akhtar aziz, governor of the central bank of malaysia ( bank negara malaysia ), at the responsible finance summit “ unlocking finance, expanding impact ”, sasana kijang, kuala lumpur, 30 march 2016. * * * it is my distinct honour and pleasure to welcome you to malaysia and to this responsible finance summit for 2016, with the theme " unlocking finance, expanding impact ". the theme gives strong recognition to the essential role of finance in driving sustainable development and growth in the world today. it is now almost a decade since the eruption of the global financial crisis. despite the challenges, much progress has been made to forge a vision for a stronger post - crisis world. whilst having to strike a balance between pursuing financial stability and the potential increased costs to financial intermediation, efforts have been made through the global financial reforms towards more sustainable financial systems. this includes the recalibration of financial regulations to curb tendencies for excessive leveraging, strengthened regulatory and supervisory systems that are forward looking and responsive to risk, as well as provisioning standards that reduce procyclicality and that restrain the build - up of risks. in addition, advancing consumer protection, furthering financial education and literacy as well as improving access to financial services have remained important long - term items on the agenda. in tandem with these efforts to strengthen financial stability, the role of finance is also being re - examined to enhance its positive impact. this entails focusing our sights on the path ahead, towards re - building a global financial architecture that will facilitate and secure our economic prospects. with the considerable benefit of hindsight, we now know that finance, if not anchored to the aim of creating sustainable value in the real economy, will become inherently unstable and destabilising to the ultimate goals of greater shared prosperity. there is thus a compelling need for finance to have a greater role in shaping responsible behaviour that underpins a stable and well - functioning economy, and advances the goals of a progressive society and sustainable environment. this is the underlying objective of responsible finance. of significance, aligning business practices towards responsible finance entails a paradigm shift away from the conventional thinking of finance - the most important distinction being the need to recognise and appreciate that responsible finance delivers value by focusing on its ultimate outcomes, rather than its immediate returns. responsible finance at its core strives to serve wider objectives that is consistent with,

seated differences. 1 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches the digital revolution is expected to increase our labour productivity by 30 % and create up to 500, 000 jobs by 2025. however, the reconfiguration also poses challenges. the need for specialised skills can lead to a widening talent gap, if left unaddressed. already, 51 % of firms surveyed by bnm faced difficulty in hiring workers, largely due to mismatches of skills for the mid and high - skilled segments1. what does this mean for us? looking ahead, the local and global outlook means organisations need to embrace the'new normal'by adopting new business models to address overall productivity and challenges at work. at its core, attracting and nurturing the right talent is crucial for any organisation of the future. thus, it is critical to begin thinking beyond policies for short - term recovery and start the task of building a future of work that is safer, fairer and greener. " building back better " calls for increased policy coherence, particularly between economic employment and social policies, and a whole - of - society approach. my remarks today seek to explore three strategies on how we may futureproof our talent workforce : 1 ) equipping the workforce with the right skills ; 2 ) employing a " good jobs strategy " ; and 3 ) strengthening collaboration among ecosystem partners. equipping the workforce with new skillsets that are relevant and practical for future needs with greater adoption of technology, in - demand skills across jobs in malaysia will shift over the next few years. the skills gaps will continue to widen. by 2025, half of all employees will need reskilling. even for workers who remain in existing roles, 40 % of core skills will need to change to remain relevant. a sizeable number of jobs will be replaced or become obsolete. this means individuals need to continuously learn new skills to be indispensable and grasp new opportunities. this means access to comprehensive upskilling and learning infrastructures are essential, whether at an individual, organisation or industry - wide level. and this means, lifelong learning is a must for everyone in the workforce. in the financial sector, we too face this challenge. recognising the importance of equipping talents with relevant skillsets, the bank and the financial industry are pursuing several initiatives on this front. they include : the development of an industry - driven framework that serves as a single point of reference on future skills and career development pathways