at the same time, however, market integration exposes domestic financial systems to new risks and vulnerabilities. shocks that occur in one market are now easily and quickly transmitted to other markets turning into a contagion that can affect an entire region. it is, therefore, imperative that a domestic financial system is strong enough to cope with the increased risk associated with globalization in general and integration of the financial markets in particular. against this backdrop, we are well positioned in saudi arabia to have a strong financial system that is serving the economy well. the system that has evolved over the years is broad - based and has a variety of institutions providing a wide range of financial services to savers and investors. it is efficient, technologically advanced, well - supervised and working on sound principles. it has demonstrated its strength and resilience during the gulf conflicts in the 1990 and in 2003, and various financial crises in the past decades. on all occasions, its stability has remained uncompromised the saudi arabian monetary agency ( sama ) is at the apex of the saudi financial system. it has almost completed fifty years of its existence. over these years, it has played a crucially important role in the consolidation and development of the saudi economy, by evolving a monetary system for the country based exclusively on national currency, striving for the promotion and maintenance of domestic price and exchange rate stability, and promoting the growth and ensuring the soundness of the financial system. it has also been managing the kingdom's foreign exchange reserves, besides acting as a banker to the government. before i describe the important contribution of commercial banks and deal with other sectors of the saudi financial system to managing the domestic and international fund flows, let me mention some important achievement of sama. sama is ordained by its charter to promote and maintain domestic price and exchange rate stability. it is gratifying that sama has achieved its objectives of its monetary policy. the average inflation rate has remained at less than 1 percent over the last 20 years, and these stable conditions have contributed to sustained economic growth of 3 % over the period. the exchange rate of the riyal has also been maintained over the period of rls. 3. 75 per us dollar, while the rates of exchange against other major currencies have moved within manageable limits. these positive indicators together with the uninterrupted full convertibility of the riyal since 1961 and no restrictions on payments from and to the kingdom, have created a

. it is worth mentioning here the approval by the council of ministers of updating the aml law to fully comply with international requirements, especially with the assessment team ’ s recommendations stated in the assessment report on the kingdom. this is a clear sign of the government of the custodian of the two holy mosques ’ attention paid to compliance with combating money laundering and terrorism financing in line with international standards in this regards. dear audience, the international, regional and national combined efforts to combat money laundering and terrorism financing are stringent evidence of combating those crimes and the consequent bis central bankers ’ speeches economic, social and security risks they may cause. accordingly, the kingdom has supported efforts aimed at developing international frameworks capable of monitoring the global financial system to detect such offenses. the kingdom is one of the countries that participated in and called for the creation of the middle east and north africa financial action task force. it is still supporting all the efforts of the fatf and menafatf, whether through its permanent participation in work teams and supporting activities that enhance the work of the two entities or through its commitment to raise the level of its government organs, financial and non - financial institutions and making sure that its related laws are in line with the international requirements. in addition, it supports the imf ’ s technical assistance fund. ladies and gentlemen, to achieve our objective, we should work together to promote awareness of the gravity of such crimes and protect all segments of the society, its government organizations, and financial and non - financial institutions. in this aspect, i would like to refer to the recent fatf ’ s recommendations issued to strengthen the international efforts in the fight against this global scourge and make necessary adjustments to the systems and techniques of their detection and combating. on this occasion, i would like make reference to the results achieved by fatf, after reviewing and revising the recommendations. there is no doubt that the updated recommendations will enhance the level and methods of protection of the economic system against such type of crimes threatening it. in conclusion, i would like to express my thanks and gratitude for your respected group for its achievements accomplished during its short life, wishing you continued success. i thank the organizers for their efforts. i also welcome you again in the kingdom of saudi arabia and i hope that your meetings in this session will be a success. bis central bankers ’ speeches