of goods and services in nominal terms contracted by 15 %, exports rose by 21 %. third, after more than two decades of almost continuous losses in international competitiveness up to 2009, by 2013 greece had recovered all of the cost competitiveness it had lost relative to its trading partners. this was due mainly to a decline in unit labour costs throughout the economy in the context of a deep recession with a surge in unemployment, and greater labour market flexibility. price competitiveness, by contrast, has not yet fully recovered, as inflation only started to respond to weak demand and lower labour costs during 2013. negative inflation of – 0. 9 % in 2013 has contributed to improving the economy ’ s price competitiveness and supports real incomes. bis central bankers ’ speeches structural reforms were implemented between 2010 and 2013 that had been overdue for decades the elimination of both domestic and external macroeconomic imbalances came as the result of a gradual adjustment of the economy from 2010 to 2013. during the same four - year period, a series of structural reforms were implemented in labour and product markets and in public administration. structural changes in labour and product markets in the labour market, significant changes were adopted, aimed, first, at better aligning wage developments with firm performance and, second, at enhancing labour mobility across sectors. progress with structural reforms in goods and services markets, by contrast, was markedly slower than in the labour market. nevertheless, according to oecd estimates, greece ranked first in responsiveness to structural reform recommendations made by the organisation. institutional changes to public administration the fiscal measures taken during the period 2010 – 2013 aimed at improving the budgetary balance as quickly as possible. they consisted mainly of increases in direct and indirect taxes, as 60 % of the adjustment achieved came from increased tax receipts, while the remaining 40 % came from expenditure cuts. nonetheless, this period also witnessed significant institutional changes geared towards streamlining the public administration and downsizing the public sector. at the same time, new institutional reforms were adopted that lay the foundations for improving fiscal management and ensuring the better control of public spending. it should, however, be stressed that progress with several critical reforms, such as administrative reform and the restructuring of public entities through mergers or closure, was slow, thereby delaying an effective restructuring of public administration and an improvement in public services. efforts have also been made to upgrade the tax collection mechanism. however, here as well, despite clear improvement, the necessary progress in curbing tax and contribution evasion has yet to be

of hierarchy over the last few years. some of them have risen rapidly thru senior positions over a short period of time. while this can bring fresh perspectives on various issues, it is also a fact that given the strategic importance of leadership at the top, it is important to understand the training requirements of top management and fulfil the same. the committee has recommended mentoring programmes for cmd / ceos of banks. i find that cafral has already carved out a niche for itself in this area. 24. we are all aware of the concerns that corporate governance weaknesses in banks world over had contributed to the financial crisis. doubts have been raised on the ability of boards of banks to adequately guide and oversee their institutions. there have been questions on the role of boards of directors and the desired, but frequently missing, skill sets of non - executive directors in light of lessons drawn from the crisis. bank boards are in constant scrutiny of the regulator, shareholders, and various stakeholders. needless to add, directors need to possess adequate skill sets and stay abreast of developments in the financial sector to guide banks and steer them in the right direction. 25. in our country, in terms of the banking regulation act, 1949, not less than fifty - one per cent, of the total number of members of the board of directors of a banking company are required to have special knowledge or practical experience in accountancy, agriculture and rural economy, banking, co - operation, economics, finance, law, small - scale industry or any other matter the special knowledge of, and practical experience in, which would, in the opinion of the reserve bank, be useful to the banking company. there is thus no requirement for a specific educational qualification for nomination as a director. bis central bankers ’ speeches 26. what is interesting is that the committee has deliberated in detail on the issue of compulsory certification of individuals before their appointment as directors on boards of banks. while the committee has recommended that such certification need not be considered as of now, it has thrown open the debate on the knowledge and skill development at the highest decision making body – the boards. formal and systematic induction process and regular training intervention subsequently for members on bank boards have been recommended. these are some of the recommendations, which in my view, can be implemented immediately. certification 27. having discussed the recommendations in broad details, i would like to spend more time on the specific issue of certification in more details. why separate certification is needed? can ’ t the academic