and agents ’ guidelines and the payment systems act 2003 ( act 662 ) with the view to consolidating it into one piece of legislation called, payment systems and services bill, 2017. 19. we have consulted widely with stakeholders in drafting the bill, and the draft is currently with the ministry of finance, ready to be forwarded to cabinet. 20. clearly, the improvement in regulatory environment has drawn interest of banks and non - bank institutions in the digital financial space. we are seeing increasing collaboration between banks and non - bank institutions such as telcos and financial technology firms for financial service delivery, hence there is no doubt that technology is promoting innovative financial products and a more inclusive financial system in ghana. 21. we are also working with the banking industry to migrate all payment cards from magnetic stripe standard to europay, mastercard and visa ( emv ) chip and pin standard this year to enhance security and reduce fraud in the industry. 22. clearly, the use of electronic payments will reduce payroll fraud, improve government revenue collection efforts and enhance the monetary policy transmission mechanism. 23. notwithstanding the progress made in payments systems development over the last couple of years, there remains a lot more to be done. it is against this background that stakeholders of the payment systems are being brought together under the payment systems council to guide the orderly development of the payment system. electronic fraud 24. generally, technology - driven payment products are prone to attacks by cyber criminals. cyber - attacks on financial service providers are becoming increasingly sophisticated and the recent attack on the central bank of bangladesh is signal enough for us to take precautionary measures to avert attacks on our financial infrastructure by hackers. as a result, i urge financial institutions to work with financial technology firms to deploy security systems with threat intelligence capabilities to assist in preventing cyber threats to financial infrastructures. 25. we therefore enjoin all financial institutions and payment systems operators to obtain international security certifications such as the iso 27001 and the pci dss. these requirements are necessary to promote the integrity of the financial and payment systems. conclusion 26. it is always a good thing to mark accomplishments. celebrations of this nature afford us all an excellent opportunity for self introspection, reflecting on our achievements and challenges, and preparing for the opportunities that lie ahead. i am confident that fidelity bank limited would continue to manage its journey well as it strives forward, with the collective efforts of its stakeholders. 27. i congratulate them for this significant

##itical tensions, notably between the us and iran, as well as social unrest in some countries ( e. g., hong kong, argentina, chile, iran, iraq, turkey, and venezuela ), could disrupt activity and hurt already tepid business sentiment ; still high trade barriers between us and china could continue to imperil global supply chains, erode sentiment, and undermine global manufacturing and trade ; and recent coronavirus outbreak which has been declared as “ global health emergency ” by the world health organization ( w ho ). growing concern over covid - 19 has likewise weighed down on growth prospects not only in china but globally. 1 / 7 bis central bankers'speeches on the domestic front, the major risks include : first, failure to address infrastructure bottlenecks, and second, incapacity to enhance disaster resilience amid increased intensity and frequency of natural hazards. as we prepare to overcome these challenges, we should look for new ways of doing things, pursue structural reforms, and strengthen our institutions along the way. as it stands today, the philippine economy is poised to sustain its 84 quarters of uninterrupted growth despite increased global uncertainties along with emerging domestic challenges. a quick glance at some of the key economic indicators in 2019 show that the country ’ s robust macroeconomic fundamentals remained intact. real gdp growth grew by 6. 4 percent in q4 2019, supported by accelerated government spending, which resulted in full year growth of 5. 9 percent. the full - year outturn was close to the lower end of the national government ’ s growth target range of 6. 0 percent – 6. 5 percent in 2019. despite strong headwinds, the domestic economy in 2019 continued to demonstrate resilience and stability, characterized by : sustained growth momentum ; favorable inflation environment ; ample liquidity and credit ; robust external position ; sound and stable banking system ; and modest fiscal deficit. the 2019 gdp growth rate was a tad lower than the revised official growth target range of the national government of 6. 0 to 6. 5 percent. but what is impressive is that the country has remained one of the fastest - growing economies, not only in asia, but in the world. on the demand side, the economy continues to be supported by sustained household consumption and quickened in public spending during the second half of 2019. on the supply side, growth was driven still by broad - based expansion of services and industry sectors supported largely by the strong numbers coming from financial intermediation