, which are necessary for the economy ’ s sustained expansion. the peso continues to be flexible and market - determined, which allow us to conduct independent monetary policy focused on domestic conditions. the peso has likewise maintained its external price competitiveness against baskets of currencies of all trading partners and trading partners in advanced and developing economies. nevertheless, we are cognizant that the peso can also be subject to excessive volatility especially in light of global interest rate and exchange rate developments. we have to take these into account. at the same time, the bsp recognizes that because monetary responses do not fully address the root causes of inflation, addressing inflation will require mitigating measures from other government agencies in order to temper the impact of supply - side forces on prices and social welfare. before i end my presentation, let me stress out that while the recent inflation outturns are underpinned by factors outside the direct influence of monetary policy such as the higher excise tax, the rise in international oil prices, and adverse weather conditions, the bsp reiterates its strong commitment and readiness to take all necessary policy actions to safeguard the government ’ s inflation targets and deliver on our primary mandate of price stability. thank you and good day! 3 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches

/ 4 bis central bankers'speeches pera presents an opportunity for small investors to grow their retirement funds. harnessing technology, pera can now be accessed digitally. this digital pera was launched as a one - stop shop digital experience for investor education, client onboarding, settlements, and investment monitoring. this platform allows investors to open, access, and invest in a range of funds through their pera account anytime, anywhere, here and abroad, through their mobile devices. creating a community of investors require industry players to adopt a financial inclusion mindset. and i urge you to take this to heart. but creating a community of investors requires a financially literate public and strong market conduct reinforced by sound consumer protection mechanisms. thus, financial education is a significant part of bsp ’ s efforts. we have entered into partnerships with the government and industry counterparts to institutionalize financial literacy training for target segments. these partnerships are facilitated through our national strategy for financial inclusion ( nsfi ). our financial education partnerships with institutions like the department of education ( deped ) can reach 29 million learners and over 800, 000 teachers ; and with the overseas workers welfare administration, 2. 3 million ofws and 14 million overseas filipinos. our financial education advocacy has also expanded to include digital literacy, which is timely given the massive digital shift driven by the pandemic. the objective of our digital literacy program is to build trust and confidence in the digital finance ecosystem by increasing the public ’ s knowledge and capability to reduce risks and vulnerabilities arising from use of digital financial services. to enrich our customer insights and as a way of bringing our services closer to the people, we have launched the bsp online buddy ( b. o. b. ). b. o. b. harnesses machine learning and artificial intelligence ( ai ) to answer queries and concerns from the public and improve efficiency in our consumer assistance mechanism ( cam ). that said, growing the market for investments to support financial inclusion requires a concerted effort among stakeholders. i encourage pru life uk investments to explore ways to enrich customer experience and bring its financial services closer to filipinos. i hope you take advantage of the opportunities our recent initiatives offer. in closing, let me quote the “ oracle of omaha ”, renowned investor warren buffet : “ never depend on a single income, make an investment to create a second source. ” through our recent initiatives, we aim to encourage more filipinos to try available investment products that can