we are desirous of seeing a union leadership, which is well - informed and constantly upgrading their leadership skills for the attainment of organisational goals and workers welfare. in conclusion, i wish to once again implore you to actively participate and take a keen interest in the deliberations of this forum. it is my expectation that you will have an opportunity to carry out an appraisal of your individual and collective skills and how they impact upon the job market and workers welfare in the financial sector. with these remarks, ladies and gentleman, i declare this forum officially open. i thank you bis central bankers ’ speeches

of the economy. a 2005 study by finmark trust revealed that only 33 % of the total population in zambia had access to financial services. the survey also revealed that most zambians prefer to invest in nonfinancial instruments such as a businesses, livestock, land or agricultural equipment. in recognition of the strategic importance of the financial sector to the country ’ s development and poverty reduction efforts, the zambian government launched the financial sector development plan ( fsdp ) in 2004 to address weaknesses that had been identified in the financial sector. the fsdp is a comprehensive strategy that is aimed at achieving a financial system that is sound, stable and market - based, that would support efficient resource mobilization necessary for economic diversification and sustainable growth. the weaknesses noted in the financial sector are addressed through a public and private sector partnership. a number of activities have already been undertaken under the fsdp such as the establishment of a credit reference bureau. similarly policies and the legal and regulatory frameworks have been developed to take into account the fast changing financial environment. these developments have resulted in a considerable increase in the number of banks and other financial service providers in the country. ladies and gentlemen, this workshop is therefore timely as it tries to bring together zambian financial sector players and international financial players who have an interest to see that zambia takes its rightful place in the world economy. apart from being a sensitisation platform to the general public, this workshop should diligently explore ways on how entrepreneurs can access venture capital funds in zambia. although venture capital organizations in zambia are not many and evident to the general populace, our expectation is that after this workshop, we shall see the emergence of an interactive and symbiotic alliance between international and zambia financial institutions. this alliance is expected to provide venture capital funds and financial services that should uplift the well - being of the zambian people at large. this sounds like a difficult task to achieve but it is my conviction that it is better to begin a step towards this direction rather than waiting for it to happen in future. mr chairman, as i conclude, let me take this opportunity to guide the participants that discipline is key in accessing venture capital funds. it is common practice in zambia for entrepreneurs to mis - apply funds obtained for capital purposes. instead of growing businesses, we tend to use funds obtained as loans, for luxurious goods such as latest cars, suits etc. this results in business failures and thus non - performing loans for banks and thereby higher interest rates