and portfolios of financial securities through products such as savings and insurances, is vital. women are critical part of the informal economy and make enormous contributions to the economy. investing in women ’ s economic empowerment sets a direct path towards gender equality, poverty eradication and inclusive economic growth. while i have been encouraged by our progress in papua new guinea of women led micro - businesses, increased women with bank accounts and increased women recipients of financial literacy training – but more must be done. it is not just about having a gender specific numerical target of additional bank accounts – it ’ s important that structural reforms enhance women ’ s roles and contribution to the economy. development finance, sdgs and financial inclusion in the region let me draw your attention to the links between development finance, the sustainable development goals ( sdgs ) and financial inclusion in the region. global experience shows that financial inclusion has a significant impact on lifting the ultra - poor and poor out of poverty in a number of countries, and the asia - pacific is no exception. financial inclusion plays a critical role across a range of sectors vital to sustainable development. the pacific forum leaders sdgs roadmap, seeks to ensure that member countries and development partners are able to deliver on the sdgs. central to the success of the roadmap is country ownership and a specific focus on sdg 17, which looks at the means of implementation – including partnerships and secure development finance for the attainment of the sdgs as a whole. the key tenets of financial inclusion overlap significantly with the current regional agenda on financing for development. development financing, which includes climate and disaster finance, combined with financial literacy and financial empowerment is crucial to mobilise finance for development and adaptation initiatives across the region. pacific island countries require additional finance for long - term development, on top of the required resources to address sudden economic shocks and extreme weather events. distinguished guests will note for instance that recent cyclones in the pacific region in fiji, samoa, tonga and vanuatu, have on average wiped out around 30 - 60 % of the national economy. a devastating impact by anyone ’ s measure. in recent years, forum economic ministers have decided to look at innovative financing solutions for regional and national initiatives – including the use of resources within the region, such as our superannuation funds and excess liquidity in the banking sector. of course, such proposals are still under development. furthermore, development partners and private, public partnerships and collaborations are looking into options for increased accessibility to climate and disaster finance

ian plenderleith : current issues in uk monetary policy speech by mr ian plenderleith, an executive director of the bank of england, to the aberdeen chamber of commerce on 26 july 2000. * * * if you look at the performance of the uk economy as a whole, there is a great deal from which we can draw encouragement. since the early 1990s, we have enjoyed what by any standards has been an impressive period of continued growth in output, employment and living standards. the sustained growth in output has been achieved despite the downturn in asia in 1997 - 98, which, accentuated by the crisis in russia, spread to the emerging market economies as a whole and produced a sharp weakening in external demand felt by all the industrialised countries. with the help of the rapid steps we took then to cut interest rates, we have seen a strong recovery in activity in the uk economy last year and continuing growth this year. equally, we can draw encouragement from the steady rise in employment that has accompanied this sustained growth in output. the improvement has been shared right across the uk : rates of employment vary from region to region, but all regions have shared a rise in employment rates. what is particularly encouraging is that this substantial rise in employment rates has been achieved in the face of considerable changes in the business environment - for example, shifts in demand and in consumer taste, advances in technology and intensified competition. industry and commerce has proved extremely effective in creating new jobs to offset, and more than offset, jobs lost as the business environment has changed. what is particularly notable about this impressive growth in output and employment is that it has been sustained over a period of years and, importantly, there is every prospect that we can continue to sustain it looking ahead. this element of sustainability is, above all, what translates periods of strong output and rising employment into permanent improvements in living standards. sustainability means having in place a framework to provide a basis of stability on which the economy can continue to grow. alongside the stable framework the government has put in place for fiscal policy, the bank of england ’ s contribution to stability is to deliver price stability - specifically, to meet the low inflation target the government has set of 2½ % on the rpix. perhaps the most encouraging feature of the strong economic performance i have described is that it has been achieved consistently with low inflation, and it is through maintaining that commitment to low inflation that we can best ensure that the economy continues to grow over time in line