amando m tetangco, jr : the role of communication in ensuring effective central banking keynote address by mr amando m tetangco, jr, governor of the central bank of the philippines ( bangko sentral ng pilipinas ), at the second imf regional seminar on central bank communications, makati, 8 july 2007. * * * mr ariyoshi, mr. reza baqir, members of the bsp monetary board, distinguished speakers, fellow central bankers around the region, other officers of the imf, good morning. on behalf of the bangko sentral ng pilipinas, i bid our guests a warm welcome to our country! you have traveled far for this second imf regional seminar on central bank communications. this conveys, in very strong terms, the significance you attach to the role of communication in ensuring effective central banking. no doubt, the sea changes in global finance and markets as well as in the domestic macroeconomy have posed significant effects in the conduct of monetary policy. in particular, we have seen the rapid evolution of monetary policy towards increased transparency. i share the general observation that secrecy or deliberate obfuscation are no longer the buzzwords in central banking circles. 1 in sharp contrast to the past practice of reticence among monetary authorities, greater emphasis on effective communication is now a best - practice policy among central banks around the world. in fact, in the last two decades or so, we were witness to an expansion in disclosure mechanisms employed by central banks. moreover, there has been a dramatic change in the nature and quality of information that monetary authorities are now willing to disclose. this morning, i will share some of my thoughts on central bank communication in general and provide you with an overview of the communication strategy that we employ at the bangko sentral, with focus on our framework for communication with other government agencies. i. the importance of central bank communication the move toward greater transparency is a key element of good corporate governance. central banks have become increasingly independent so there is scope for greater accountability. after all, a central bank is a public office whose policy decisions have an important bearing on the direction of the economy. thus, the central bank should be able to clearly define its goals and provide a compelling explanation behind its policy actions. in turn, transparency allows for an honest assessment of central bank performance, given the goals it has pledged to achieve. the emphasis on better transparency practices also recognizes the idea that transparency makes monetary policy

patrick honohan : ireland ’ s eu - imf programme – delivering what it says on the tin address by mr patrick honohan, governor of the central bank of ireland to the european commission dg - ecfin conference, dublin, 10 january 2014. * * * accompanying charts can be found at the end of the speech. introduction the eu - imf programme of financial support for ireland, negotiated in november 2010 and with the final tranches of lending being completed about now, delivered what it said on the tin. amid turbulent market conditions, it provided a safe harbour into which ireland was able to retreat, in order to clarify its ability and determination to deal with the severe financial problems that had so destructively erupted during the global financial crisis in september 2008. those problems had their origin in the property bubble that had already begun to deflate a little earlier, and which had not only generated the huge latent banking losses that have been so much discussed, but also incubated severe fiscal and macroeconomic imbalances. the key to the return of market confidence to the extent that now exists has undoubtedly been rigorous adherence to fiscal goals. over the three years, a continuation of the momentum of fiscal adjustments already initiated in 2008 has brought the public finances back within striking distance of eu norms. the debt - to - gdp ratio has reached a peak and is on target to fall in the coming year. economic growth, albeit modest, has returned on a broad front ; both full time and part - time employment have been growing for many months now. residential property prices in the capital have bounced back a little from their lows of two years ago, and have on average been broadly stable in the rest of the country also for some months. later i will speak a bit about how far the economy is nevertheless away from where we need it to be. but it cannot be denied that, reflecting both policy and general economic conditions, market confidence in irish creditworthiness is higher than at any time since well before the greek crisis developments of may 2010. it was not always obvious that this restoration of market confidence was going to work out. the imf staff appraisal of the initial programme proposal in december 2010 emphasised that the risks were high. and, after the programme began, the euro area slipped into a second dip recession which had its effect in slowing the irish recovery. the cumulative change in gdp, consumption and employment over the three years may have been as much as 2 percentage points lower than