country in the world to use this new security feature. on the 50 and 20 dollar notes, we have retained the “ multi image hologram ” or the round silver foil, but instead of having both of them of the same shape we have different shapes – the 50 dollars have the shape of a turtle and the 20 dollars the shape of a fan. on counterfeits, i wish to clarify that in relation to the total value of currency in circulation, the combined value of counterfeits is extremely negligible at. 0009 percent. we obviously cannot completely eradicate counterfeits. however, we are well aware of the importance of safeguarding at all times public confidence in our currency. the bank will therefore continue to work with the fiji police force to renew media awareness on the security features of our currency notes. for the first time, fiji ’ s banknotes will vary in length to help the visually impaired. the 100 dollar note will be the length of our existing banknotes. the length of the lower denomination will progressively reduce by 5 millimetres. this means that the two dollars will be the shortest note being 25 millimetres less than the 100 dollar note. the notes will all have the same width as the current notes. i am confident that we will be proud of our new banknotes. in the next two weeks, we will be starting a public awareness campaign to inform the public of the new notes. the new banknotes will go into circulation from 10 april. the new and the “ existing ” notes will circulate side by side until the existing notes go out of circulation. both designs are of course legal tender. with the introduction of the 100 dollar banknote, we have the same highest denomination with developed countries like the united states, australia and new zealand. the united states has stated that it is not raising its highest banknote above 100 dollars. i believe that it would be a very, very long time before fiji will think again about raising its highest bank note. once again, i express our sincere thanks to his excellency, the president for agreeing to be our chief guest. we are indeed honoured that you have graced the occasion with your presence today. i now have the pleasure of inviting his excellency to address us.

sada reddy : liquidity risk in banking organisations opening remarks by mr sada reddy, governor of the reserve bank of fiji, at the 2009 afspc annual workshop and meeting, denarau, nadi, 26 october 2009. * * * mr jason george : senior financial sector specialist, bis ; distinguished resource persons ; representatives of the pftac office ; honoured participants and fellow central bank colleagues ; bula vinaka, and let me extend to you all a very warm welcome to the fiji islands. i am delighted to be here this morning to address this annual gathering of bank supervisors from the pacific, on the important subject of liquidity risk in banking organisations. may i commend pftac and the afspc for choosing this topic for this year ’ s workshop. this is a very appropriate topic for pacific supervisors, given what has transpired in the global financial system in the last 12 - months. i note from the programme that we have very distinguished resource persons to guide us in the area of liquidity risk management. however, at the outset, i would like to share with you some recent developments that have taken place in fiji with regard to the supervisory role of the reserve bank of fiji. i intend to do this as i presume that one of the greatest benefits of this kind of gathering is the networking and sharing of each other ’ s experiences. recent developments in fiji the global financial crisis has had a significant spill - over effect on the liquidity of our financial system. the spill - over effect was brought forth mainly by lower foreign reserve inflows. the floods in january this year also affected most of the businesses especially here in nadi, and as a result, further strained the liquidity available in the banking system via withdrawals and the need for banks to lend to assist in flood rehabilitation works. this was a challenging time for our commercial banks as was witnessed by the increased activity observed in the inter - bank money market. to address the threat that our financial system faced, the reserve bank responded with a mix of policy measures during the year, including the reduction of the statutory reserve deposits requirement, tightening of exchange controls, devaluation of the fiji dollar, controls on banks ’ interest rates and spreads, and re - emphasising the importance of lending to priority sectors for a sustainable future. the bank also introduced a flood rehabilitation facility to assist in the reconstruction and business resumption due to the flood damages. lending rates of our licensed banks were trending