with the idea i am about to propose. this theme is saying to me that we must not be too engrossed in the business of analyzing the past lest we forget to look ahead toward unchartered waters we must yet traverse. i think that after three and one half years of meetings and conferences we are all fatigued with an overload of hind - sight wisdom that offers perfect explanations for the 2008 global financial crisis that none or very few saw coming. the irony is that very few of us saw the coming of the 2008 crisis because we were too busy analyzing the crisis before that one. now, the fact that the caribbean went relatively unscathed from the global financial crisis, except for the clico and baico experiences, is by no means an indication that we were any better prepared ; in my view it was mere lucky happenstance and this is what we need to address in the future. i am sure caricom heads of government at their june 2009 meeting in georgetown, guyana had this near miss catastrophe squarely in their rearview mirrors when they agreed on the urgency of putting in place a strong framework for regional financial stability. citing, among other things, the clico and baico experiences, they tasked the committee of central bank governors to prepare a proposal for the creation of a regional architecture for financial stability for final consideration by the council for finance and planning ( cofap ). the mandate was to accelerate the construction of a robust regional financial stability framework. bis central bankers ’ speeches the committee of central bank governors set about this task diligently. first, they secured funding from the inter - american development bank for a regional financial risk assessment project under the aegis of the caribbean centre for money and finance ( the ccmf ). then, a three - day workshop for regional regulatory stakeholders was held in port of spain, trinidad on 3 to 5 march 2011 to discuss the requirements and actions needed to develop the framework and to agree on the outline of the terms of reference for the planning and implementation of a financial architecture that supports regional financial stability. from all accounts, the workshop was well attended and yielded several recommendations on governance and operational structure of a regional financial stability board. however, progress on this project recently stalled as governors remain fundamentally at odds over a few of the major recommendations, in particular : • the recommendation for the ccmf to become the central reporting body for financial stability ; • the legality of regional regulators sharing sensitive confidential information with a non - regulatory body

move away from globalization towards the rise of protectionist policies such as the protracted trade tensions between the us and china. while the philippines is not directly affected with the tariff impositions, the continued trade friction could take its toll on the country ’ s external sector. fourth, there is also the so - called rise of the fourth industrial revolution. while technological innovation in itself is not bad, and indeed often brings benefits, the velocity and depth of transformation could have potentially disruptive effects, especially in the short term. in fact, rapid technological innovation has already ushered in broad structural economic changes that policymakers are only just beginning to understand. certainly, this would have significant impact in the conduct of economic policy and the way we do business. on top of these global risks, we also have to deal with the infrastructure gap on the domestic front. nonetheless, despite these risks, we are cautiously optimistic that the philippine economy is poised to sustain its growth momentum amid lingering global headwinds. let me close by assuring everyone that the bsp will continue to adhere to sound policies and remain focused on its mandate. you can continue to count on us to remain steadfast in our primary objective of price and financial stability, factors that reinforce the vibrant investment environment. having said all these, i am looking forward to a productive, open, and stimulating discussion with you and will be receptive to your insights. thank you and mabuhay. 3 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches