average of 11 - 12 per cent over the past few years to 8 per cent in 2009. it is widely felt that what we are witnessing now is not so much a crisis in the financial system but a crisis of confidence on the part of household and businesses, and it is global in nature. the data coming out for the developed countries are shocking indeed. the u. s., for example reported job losses of over half a million in december, pushing the unemployment rate to 7. 2 per cent, the highest in 16 years. it is projected that unemployment in the us could soon reach double - digits. in germany, the unemployment rate now stands at close to 9 per cent : in the u. k., unemployment has reached ( 6. 0 per cent ) and in the e. u. it is 8. 4 per cent. to address the deepening recession and mounting job losses, most of the advanced economies are adopting enormous stimulus programs. • president - elect barack obama ’ s economic recovery and investment plan includes a fiscal stimulus of around us $ 775 billion, in addition to bank support programmes of another us $ 1. 5 - 2 billion. • germany has unveiled a major fiscal stimulus package which includes cuts in taxes and a programme of public investment infrastructure. • japan also unveiled a massive economic recovery package. • even china recently announced a new fiscal stimulus plan, of around us $ 586 billion aimed at boosting the rapidly slowing economy. our caribbean neighbours have also been seriously impacted by the financial crisis and the global recession. in jamaica emigrants ’ remittances ( the second largest foreign exchange earner ) fell by an estimated 17 per cent last year. an even larger fall is expected in 2009, along with a sharp reduction in tourist arrivals. there have been hotel closures and the postponement of hotel investment projects in the bahamas, the oecs, barbados and elsewhere in the region. late last year, the barbadian government unveiled an economic stimulus package aimed at protecting jobs and supporting the tourism industry. jamaica has also announced a stimulus package involving tax cuts, loan facilities for vulnerable sectors and infrastructural spending. here in trinidad and tobago, we have seen an interesting change in our circumstances over the past few months. our once thriving energy sector is facing sharply reduced external demand and anemic prices. oil prices have plummeted from over us $ 140 per barrel in june 2008 to around us $ 40 per barrel currently, while gas

narrow list of complaints to which banks and insurance companies have agreed. in thinking about the statutory backing for the ombudsman ’ s office, it may be necessary to have a flexible legal framework where the foundations are enshrined in law, but scope and operational arrangements are set in regulations. independent governance is a second, critical design issue. ideally, the office of the financial services ombudsman should be independent of consumers and of the financial services industry, whose disputes are being handled. in deciding cases, the ombudsman also needs to be independent of the central bank, because the ombudsman is acting as an alternative to the courts. so it is helpful for the ombudsman office to have an independent board, with a balanced membership reflecting persons with an understanding of regulation, the financial industry and consumer protection. a third design issue revolves around the coverage of financial businesses. a significant number of complaints received by the ombudsman are outside its terms of reference. the office received 409 banking complaints which were outside its terms of reference in 2003 – 2012, 179 more than the qualified banking complaints it received for review. in 2011 – 2012, the office received 1, 173 enquiries regarding complaints outside the banking and insurance sectors. many complaints which fall outside the ombudsman ’ s terms of reference relate to bank fees and pricing of bank products and services, lapsed insurance policies, insurance premium charged, personal injury for motor vehicle accidents, credit union shares and loans, and general pain and suffering. expanding the ombudsman ’ s mandate to include credit unions, the unit trust corporation, pension schemes and mutual funds would go a long way in strengthening the credibility of the scheme. finally, in order to deliver on this expanded mandate the ofso would need to be better resourced with the skill sets and talent as its jurisdiction and workload grows. the staff complement in the ombudsman ’ s office are currently seconded from, or approved by, the central bank. once a statutory financial services ombudsman is established the ombudsman would appoint the staff who would work for the scheme and not be seconded from the central bank. the central bank and the ofso will be reviewing the draft report. once finalized and accepted, the final report will form the basis for a proposed policy document ( ppd ) on upgrading the regime of financial consumer protection. the ppd will serve as the starting point for initial discussions and