into all aspects of the banking market in fiji. i was particularly pleased to see how readily bsp embraced the fijiclear payment system even though they were the newest boy on the block. they are also not holding back on introducing new banking technology. bsp is in the process of installing two atms in suva and another two have been installed here at this branch. it is also extremely encouraging to see a regional bank like bsp making waves in fiji. we all know that bsp is a strong regional bank with a history going back as far as 1957. bsp is listed on the port moresby stock exchange and is the largest bank in papua new guinea. bsp is expanding its regional footprint with one branch in niue, one in the solomon islands and now two in fiji. from the reserve bank ’ s viewpoint, well - established and well - capitalised banks like bsp provide greater choice, competition and innovation in the fiji market. that is a good thing for business and the public, and is therefore good for fiji. every business seems to be heading down the queens highway to nadi. it was a matter of time before bsp took to the highway. it makes good business sense. nadi town is an excellent location. the town will continue to grow feeding off its tourism base. banking industry let me say a few more words about the banking sector in fiji. we have 5 commercial banks right now. over the years, the number has hovered around this level – it has gone up and come down. some banks have come and left for one reason or another. fortunately, their departures have been handled smoothly. unfortunately, we had to restructure one bank but again that complex operation was well managed. all in all, i believe that our banking system has matured in the last ten years. with that maturity has come greater stability and soundness. and that augurs well for the economy. and talking about the economy, it appears from some of the comments in the media that many of us do not fully grasp the contribution that the financial system makes to the economy. in 2006, the banking sector in fiji employed over 1, 500 people ( and rising ) and contributed close to $ 40 million in taxes. clearly, this is a serious and important business sector for fiji. the banking sector plays a key role in the economic development of this country. i am sure if you ask bsp, they would tell you that banking business here is hard, not

value payment system launched on 30 june 2005 and introduced nationwide has significantly improved the payment methods of rural credit cooperatives and contributed to providing a level playground for the rural credit cooperatives. this pilot project of bank card services tailored for migrant workers is another important measure by the pbc to speed up rural financial infrastructure building and increase competitiveness of rural credit cooperatives. in recent years, thanks to the efforts of many parties, bank cards have seen rapid development in china. with issuance increasing significantly, card acceptance environment and payment function improving continuously, band card has become the most frequently used means of non - cash payment. but the development has not been evenly distributed among regions ; therefore we have always attached importance to introducing this modern payment instrument to rural areas and enabling farmers to benefit from it. this pilot project in guizhou represents a business innovation that offers migrant workers the convenience of withdrawing their deposit from a different location. it also helps broaden the business scope of bank card operating institutions such as card issuing banks, rural credit cooperatives and china union - pay co. ltd, brings a win - win situation for all and promotes a rapid development of the industry. this tailored service effectively offers another way for migrant workers to send money to their home town. according to statistics, there are more than a hundred million migrant workers in mainland china that produce fund flow totaling several hundred billion yuan between urban and rural areas each year. the flow is expected to increase by dozens of billion annually in the future. at the moment, the fund remittance system is not fully developed for migrant workers as the fund transfer mode is not diversified and takes a long time. the need of these workers for a convenient, safe and rapid way of transferring fund is yet to be satisfied and many of them have to personally carry large amount of cash home. with the opening of tailored bank card service, rural migrant workers can transfer the fund deposited at their place of work to the rural credit cooperatives at their hometown and withdraw cash at the rural credit cooperatives with a swipe of card, in a matter of several seconds. this not only offers a new way of fund transfer, but also helps migrant workers use card more than cash and build a socialist new countryside. comrades, the pilot project of bank card services tailored for migrant workers is of far - reaching significance. we should look at this project from the strategic point of serving the people and the economy in the rural areas and explore, through the project, effective ways and experiences of rural bank