commitment to support socioeconomic progress and sustainable economic development in namibia. as the bank of namibia, we remain committed to leading with vision and integrity. we vow to serve and grow this jewel called namibia. 7. the good book states in proverbs 12 : 15 states that " he who is wise listens ". in this regard, i will keep my remarks today very brief as i know everyone in this auditorium today as well as those that have joined us online are eager to listen and tap from the well of wisdom of our head of state. therefore, without any delay, i would like to call upon his excellency the president, dr. hage geingob to share his thoughts with us. i thank you. 3 / 3 bis - central bankers'speeches

, it has played an important role in building a body of outstanding caribbean economics scholarship through on - going collaboration, primarily among the caricom central banks, the university of the west indies, the private sector and civil society organisations. it is no surprise, therefore, that this forum has contributed to and honed the economic acumen of some of the more prominent economists of our generation, including current governors of some of our central banks. indeed, i personally recall my first attendance at a regional monetary studies conference in 1981 where i first came face to face with some of the legends of this region. the contribution of stalwarts to this conference such as professor c. y. thomas, professor compton bourne, terrence farrell, delisle worrell, the late professor roland craigwell, shelton nicholls, to name but a few is worthy of emulation. it is my considered view that for young economists, the comments and encouragement provided by persons of this calibre served to strengthen, over time, the quality of research produced within the region. as policy makers, we recognise that focused, timely and relevant research is important for good policy - making. in the region, we continue to face many economic challenges in a global environment that is not always favourable. as we speak, there is uncertainty created by international developments such as the discussions on brexit, protectionism and threats of trade wars, the risks posed by geopolitical risks to oil prices and rising interest rates. at the same time, some of our economies, which have had to shift their economies from traditional primary products to services in an effort to facilitate growth and jobs and make them more resilient to economic and climatic shocks, now face the threats presented by the oecd initiative on base erosion profit sharing and the threats of eu blacklisting. at the domestic level, fiscal imbalances and high public sector indebtedness act as a brake on growth, raising the question of whether there is an optimal size to government in our economies. there are still constraints on the availability of finance for small enterprises and how can we improve the efficiency of the financial system to promote growth. at the regional level, we are not as advanced in the regional project as we would have wanted to be. these are but some of the challenges for which we require solutions. in this context therefore, while our research techniques have become more sophisticated through the use of the latest in econometric methods, we must not forget that the underlying