gent sejko : modernisation of retail payment systems in albania welcome address by mr gent sejko, governor of the bank of albania, at the conference on the " modernisation of retail payment systems in albania ", tirana, 21 june 2018. * * * dear deputy prime minister dear media representatives, dear participants and colleagues, welcome to this conference, whose topic, i would say, is a challenge and promotes the modernisation of the retail payments in albania. the bank of albania has constantly noted in its communications that the safe and efficient development of payment systems is a key objective not only to support monetary policy implementation and safeguard financial stability, but also to serve as an important tool for formalised and sustainable economic development. in addition to the focus on payment systems – as a fundamental pillar for the functioning of financial markets and the economy in general – the bank of albania is paying increasingly more attention to their development from the perspective of financial inclusion. the main goal in this regard is the broad use of payment instruments in the everyday life of citizens. this new way of development aims to identify and satisfy the needs of the smallest component of the economy – households and enterprises. taking into account the conditions of the albanian market, with a low level of financial inclusion and education, and the relatively high costs for the provided services, our goal is to urge the banking system to offer citizens easily - accessible and cost - effective services, supporting thus the objective for broader financial inclusion. therefore, it is both necessary and challenging to intervene in this aspect, especially as we are experiencing rapid and comprehensive developments in technology. most of the aspects in our everyday life are becoming subject to digitalisation and automated processes and the modernisation of payment systems, in turn, is becoming increasingly important. the research and analyses carried out by the bank of albania with the assistance of the world bank clearly show that the promotion of digitalisation and innovation in the payment market contributes considerably to the reduction of costs of these instruments, providing services that are easily accessible and affordable by everyone. in albania this development is considerably lagging behind other countries, with which we aim to approximate in the framework of european union integration process ; hence, its promotion becomes even more important both in the framework of this integration, and in the broader context of international markets. the modernisation of these systems through digitalisation will be achieved through a wellregulated development and clearly - set goals in the medium - term strategy, which will be presented later today during the conference.

ardian fullani : the importance of economic research speech by mr ardian fullani, governor of the bank of albania, at the workshop “ economic research in south - eastern europe ”, tirana, 15 november 2007. * * * dear ladies and gentlemen! it is a great pleasure to be here today and open the proceedings of the workshop “ economic research in southeast europe “. first, allow me to express my thanks to the representatives from the respective central banks for their participation in this workshop and all the other guests present today. let us hope that this workshop will serve as a catalyst for a more intensified exchange of experiences among our region in the field of economic research. this process is of special importance with a view to improving the standards of economic research and for enhancing our know - how in this area. undoubtedly, timely and accurate economic research is vital for undertaking more sound economic policies for boosting a stable and non - inflationary growth and for coping with various risks under a dynamic and rapid integration of our economies. from a central bank ’ s viewpoint, economic research should aim at reaching an optimal balance between the significance to the monetary policy or financial stability, their quality and timely availability. when compared to the academic economic research, a central bank ’ s economic research should manifest the same quality, but be positioned on assisting the monetary policy decision - making process. otherwise, their added value is overwhelmingly reduced. the role of research in the monetary policy decision - making process becomes even more important under the inflation targeting regime that the bank of albania will fully adopt in the near future. economic literature defines inflation targeting framework, inter alia, as “ comprehensive and multi - dimensional information, analyses and statistics ”. as in many central banks which adopt the inflation targeting regime, the bank of albania has oriented its resources for economic research, mainly to understanding the process of inflation and of its forecasting, and to understanding the transmission mechanism of monetary policy. the building of a macroeconomic model for the albanian economy is of special importance to the economic research of the bank of albania. moreover, issues related to the real, foreign, financial and the fiscal sectors, as well as other issues related to the improvement of economic statistics are in focus. undoubtedly, the constant improvement of economic research, of their ethics, quality and significance to monetary policy should be of high priority. the bank of albania is conscious of the fact that research in the abovementioned areas should be further consolidated. dear friends! allow me to state my opinion that