##fia program comes in. the dfia focuses on recognizing outstanding mfis and microentrepreneurs who have successfully adopted digitalization in their operations. by encouraging innovation in microfinance, we hope to inspire more organizations to do the same. as we promote increased access to credit through digitalization, let us remember that microfinance is not only about borrowing. microfinance also provides access to savings, investments, and insurance. these tools will enable the vulnerable to better manage their resources and protect themselves against certain risks. this resilience is about the overall financial health of microentrepreneurs. so, digitalization is a bridge that connects financially underserved segments of the population to providers of formal financial services. so, let us build more digital bridges so that everyone may enjoy the benefits of financial inclusion. thank you all for your continuing support. magandang hapon sa inyong lahat! 2 / 2 bis - central bankers'speeches

as the global financial turmoil spread. the peso depreciated 13. 3 pct against the us dollar in 2008 against an 18. 8 pct appreciation in 2007. this loss in value was, nonetheless, in line with movements of other currencies in the region, which also depreciated against the us dollar. in addition, in terms of the real effective exchange rate over the past eight years, the peso has largely maintained its competitiveness against a basket of currencies of our major trading partners and competitor countries. in the meantime, we have been able to keep the gross international reserves at comfortable levels. gir stood at $ 36. 8 b at end november 2008, an increase of about $ 3 b over the end 2007 level. the build - up in gir has allowed us to keep the bop in surplus in 2008. at almost $ 37 b, gir is 5. 8 months ’ of imports and 2. 5 times short - term debt based on residual maturity. these ratios are at least twice the international benchmark levels of 3 months of imports and 1 time the debt ratio. the banking system remains sound. the series of banking reforms put in place over the last five years, and among others, the inherent conservatism and the domestic orientation of banks, as well as the bsp ’ s phased - in approach to embracing financial innovation, have resulted in minimal exposure of the banking system to the troubled international financial institutions. in addition, banks continue to be capitalized above the bis standard and bsp regulatory requirement ; bank balance sheets are at their strongest since the 1997 asian financial crisis ; and assets continue to grow. what do we foresee for 2009? 2009 will be a critical year. it could define how we will perform when the markets turn around. if you read most analyses of the us and major economies ’ downtrend, the expectation is these could last about 18 months. therefore, depending on when you begin your count, recovery in the us and maybe globally could begin in 2010. no one, however, can say for certain how deep and how long the global downtrend would be, nor how far markets would retreat. therefore it is incumbent upon us to continue to brace for further uncertainty in the global financial markets, recessionary trends that would spread to regions beyond the developed world ; and volatilities in commodity prices, particularly oil. how shall we respond to the unfolding environment? monetary policy in 2009 will