gent sejko : economic research - discussions and developments address by mr gent sejko, governor of the bank of albania, to the 11th south - eastern european economic research workshop, organised by the bank of albania, tirana, 4 december 2017. * * * distinguished guests, dear participants, it is a great pleasure to be here with you today. on behalf of the bank of albania, i would like to welcome you to the 11th south - east european economic research workshop and thank you for your continuous devotion and precious contribution. the workshop has been evolving throughout the years, providing a useful platform for researchers, academics and central bankers from the region and beyond, to : present innovative research findings, foster exchange of views, discuss about key developments in money markets, monetary policy implementation and central bank operational frameworks, and develop long - term collaborative relationships. from a strategically point of view, the main goal of economic research is to provide a strong conceptual and empirical basis for policy - making. high - quality research leads to higher credibility of the central bank and improves the quality of its policies. we strongly believe that a qualitative research increases the potential contribution of the central bank on the financial markets, the economy and the society. like in other european central banks, economic research at the bank of albania is an important function in its overall activity, which has proved to be successful in supporting the policy formulation and implementation processes. new methodologies provided by research, based on empirical models, have been adopted as standard tools of policy analysis and forecasts by other departments ( e. g. monetary policy, financial stability, banking supervision, etc. ). this means that the mission, scope and contribution of research, assume a very important place in bank of albania ’ s development strategy. its goals consist in : increasing our knowledge and understanding about domestic, regional and global economy, including the functioning of the financial system ; developing high - quality models, tools and analysis to support better the monetary policy and financial stability ; participating in research international networks ( region and euro system ), to facilitate the exchange of opinions and views with other central banks ; and delivering reliable advice to policymakers and sharing findings and conclusions with market participants, foreign investors and to the public. furthermore, during this year, research at the bank of albania extended its activity to include historical research. the outcome was the conference on “ money and banking in albania, from antiquity to nowadays ”, which brought together many scholars, numismatists, archaeologists

run, demographics of the elderly are a given. thus, reviewing the current social welfare framework in order to make it viable on a sustainable basis, taking into consideration the longer - term changes in demographics, is an enormous challenge. iv. conclusion when one looks back into history, the “ global shifts ” examined by professor eichengreen are happening continuously. i believe japan ’ s catching - up with the advanced economies through its post - war miracle and its ensuing transition to slow growth, as well as the current high growth of china and india, can be understood as examples of the “ global shifts ” ( slide 12 ). high growth cannot last forever. in concluding, i would like to emphasize that what is important here is to introduce a smooth transition from high growth to stable growth. even emerging economies which are currently enjoying high growth will likely face, in the future, the same challenges that japan is currently struggling with. for this, preventing bubbles, reviewing business models and preparing for changes in demographics are especially important. thank you for your attention. bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches