basis that the stability of the financial system can be tomorrow ’ s objective, for the next person. but in order to achieve this, we need to be very clear on the benefits of financial stability. one of the questions i get asked most frequently is how we will ensure that the lessons of the crisis stick. we can only achieve this if the case for financial stability is well understood. there is a very clear parallel here with monetary policy. the success of monetary policy is founded on public acceptance of the benefits of sustained low inflation. that did not come easily, as the experiences of the 1970s taught. but once that public acceptance and interest started to become embedded, the task of monetary policy became easier – not easy, but easier. in this important sense, no such policy making apparatus can be independent of the will and interest of the public. and nor is the task of ensuring public acceptance ever finished. monetary policy has demonstrated that a firmly established and lasting institutional framework for policy making is a necessity. but exactly what is the public interest in financial stability? this can be a harder question to answer than for monetary policy, because financial stability cannot be so readily summarised in a statistical series. there is a temptation to generalise that you certainly know it when it isn ’ t there. i think there are at least four things that the public should want as part of the overall stability of the financial system. first, that they can have confidence in the safety and soundness of the institutions that hold their money and savings and write policies to protect them against risks. second, that those institutions have the capacity to undertake the stable and sound provision of financial services to the economy, including of course lending. third, that the system does not do business and exist on the basis of an implicit commitment that the state will have to use public money, the public ’ s money, to bail out firms that get into trouble. and fourth, that the public can place trust in firms and markets based on their reputations and the transparency of their dealings. regulation is important and it can help to foster that trust, but it cannot substitute for the trust that the public needs to have, in firms and markets. the state is not there to support the industry, and regulators are not there to substitute for trust in and the reputation of firms and markets. some important principles follow from the identification of the public interest in financial stability. first, a competitive financial system can only exist if it is rooted in stability : competition and stability

smes. these initiatives have yielded encouraging outcomes. yet, i believe, sri lanka still has a great deal of untapped potential in developing social enterprises. there is much scope to increase the use of financial services, technology and business support services in order to promote social enterprises. to achieve this, a more dynamic approach, which entails the combined effort of all stakeholders, including state and private entities following a cohesive policy framework, is required to match available resources with the needs of the sector. despite the numerous challenges, it is encouraging to observe the emergence of organizations, which are seeking to operate their commercial ventures to achieve the twin objectives of a social mission and profit generation. their prospects are being enhanced by the trend in consumer choice towards healthier, eco - friendly and " social goods ". " social buyers " who are keen to buy goods and services from social enterprises are emerging as a new force. in conclusion, a concerted effort is needed to establish policies and systems to support the growth of the emerging social enterprise sector in sri lanka. i hope today ’ s deliberations will deliver outcomes which will assist social entrepreneurs to lead social change by stimulating economic growth, innovation and the development of social capital. social enterprises have an important role to play in sri lanka meeting the sdgs. thank you.