offer additional stimulus. liquid financial markets are not the cure to the crisis, but they remain a necessary precondition to any solution. unconventional instruments are fast becoming a natural part of the policy toolkit of major central banks. central banks across emerging markets – including albania – are also exploring the possibility of employing unconventional instruments. however, it is not without risks and it might not be easily implemented in emerging economies. in particular, we believe emerging markets ’ central banks should avoid raising the risk profile of their balance sheets and should strive to preserve the credibility of their policy frameworks and independence. the second set of challenges is to acknowledge the long - term impact of the pandemic on our economies and societies, and to account for them in our policy frameworks. the spectrum of potential implications is wide but i will try to concentrate my remarks on a few items : the pandemic may drive a greater gap in terms of inequality, both among the advanced and developing economies as well as within an economy. an economic consequence of this pandemic is that it may slow down the catch - up process of developing economies relative to advanced ones. an additional one may be inequality within an economy, given that unemployment hits more the young population and those less educated. how these divergences may shape the future of social and economic policies aiming at addressing these divergences, this remains to be seen. the enforced limited social interaction due to the risk from coronavirus has accelerated the shift towards digital business and digital finance. while financial technology ( or fintech ) has been on the rise prior to this pandemic, the lockdown and limited social interaction has promoted further growth of this sector which may change the landscape of financial industry in the future. the pandemic may well trigger permanent shifts to the work - life balance. remote working can become a permanent option in the future as some global companies may have already predicted. a final issue, is how the pandemic may affect the current climate crisis in the long run. besides the short - term impact of the lockdown on the climate issue, an optimistic view holds that the lockdown may trigger e new momentum towards a cleaner economy. * * * honorable participants, i am looking forward to an open discussion and your fruitful feedback on these issues. 3 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches i am confident a frank exchange of ideas will enrich our joint understanding on the nature of challenges we are facing as well as on the best policies and instruments we should

gent sejko : albania ’ s economy and its interaction with monetary and fiscal policies statement by mr gent sejko, governor of the bank of albania, to the hearing session of the parliamentary committee on economy and finance, about the draft - budget 2017, tirana, 22 november 2016. * * * honourable chairman, honourable members of the committee, the steady and long - term development of albania has been and is a constant priority of bank of albania ’ s work. therefore, accomplishing this objective requires not only applying prudent monetary and fiscal policies, but also their constant and efficient coordination. the approval of the budget and the accompanying fiscal package is decisive for the country ’ s economic development. the budget and the relevant fiscal package outline the short and medium - term priorities for public finance, contribute to the long - term profile of growth and development by supporting with funds the structural reforms, and orientate the private sector development by determining the incentives on consumption and investments. therefore, the bank of albania appreciates the opportunity to be able to present to this hearing session our opinion on the draft - budget 2017. in compliance with our legal mandate and the scope of our expertise, the opinion of the bank of albania on the draft - budget 2017 will focus on the following : albania ’ s development perspectives, intertwined with the monetary and fiscal policies ; fiscal projections and public finance stability ; and, effects of projected public borrowing on the domestic financial markets. at the end, there are some suggestions on possible measures to boost the effectiveness and stability of public finances. 1. the expected performance of the economy and its interaction with the monetary and fiscal policies the albanian economy has shown signs of recovery over the past two years. this performance reflects the recovery of private consumption and investments, whereas the external environment has been and remains unfavourable. the expansion of the private sector activity was supported by our accommodative monetary policy and was favoured by the consolidating fiscal policy implemented during this period. this policy mix has brought financing costs down for the private sector and has improved the liquidity situation in the economy. the 2017 budget takes into account forecasts for the real economic growth at 3. 8 % and an increase in the nominal value of the gross domestic product to 6. 3 %. as detailed in the draftbudget and in the accompanying explanatory notes, such economic growth will be supported by the continuation of the combination of the monetary stimulus with the fiscal consolidation policy. however