was inspiring to hear the successes of financial institutions in digitizing the operations of smes. this has indeed accelerated during the pandemic as smes have pivoted their operations to adopt to covid - 19 containment measures. to address the cash flow constraints that smes have faced due to covid - 19 restrictions, banks have restructured their loans to see them through this turbulent times. equally inspiring is the move by financial institutions and technology players to build the skills of smes by automating and training them on financial management. it will take finance plus which is access to finance and upskilling smes to restore them to drive growth and resilience post covid - 19. a lot more remains to be done in restoring smes but the green shots are sprouting and we need to nurture them carefully. second, on partnerships and collaborations, the key message was the need for increased collaboration in building a sustainable financial ecosystem. this approach leverages on expertise, resources and innovations from various players. central to this is the building of the requisite infrastructure to connect our citizens to the digital realm. significant resources and input will be required both from the public and private sectors to put together the requisite hardware and software for sustainable digital ecosystems. it was inspiring to hear from mas on the global initiative to build foundational digital infrastructure drawing on the experience of singapore, india and other global leaders. collaborations such as these will enable countries learn from each other and fast track the development of foundational infrastructure in their countries without reinventing the wheel. third, on sustainable finance, the pandemic has brought home the inter - dependence of corporations and the communities they operate in. together corporations and communities have worked together to mitigate the adverse impact of the pandemic. illuminating experiences were pointed out where banks and other entities worked with their customers through this period through restructuring of loans and continued provision of services through digital platforms. more encouraging as we build back better were cases where banks and other entities worked with manufacturers and smes to pivot their operations to the new normal. this was particularly pertinent in the move towards domestic manufacture of personal protective equipment ( ppe ) which initially were sourced from overseas. as we build back better, sustainable finance will be imperative. in the long run, our vision at the cbk is that all finance will be green. we are working closely with the kenyan banking sector whose leaders shared their experiences in this area. green finance is particularly pertinent

. the central bank of kenya through its capacity building arm – the kenya school of monetary studies ( ksms ) intends to develop a certified agricultural finance program in collaboration with compete – usaid. this program will be suitable for agricultural officers as well as credit officers. this is important in developing the critical mass of human capital that fully understands agribusiness, such as agribusiness cycles, risk management practices, farm cash - flows and finance and insurance. this will support farmers and also develop a strong drive to lift the policy paradigm in this area. but the wider scope of monetary policy support is not in doubt. finally, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, i would like to conclude my brief remarks by wishing all of you fruitful deliberations this morning. thank you very much for your kind attention.