put under an imf programme as we were in a position to meet and repay all our foreign obligations. we have since emerged from this turbulence much strengthened and on a solid and steady growth path. indeed, this is one debt that the country will not be able to repay. malaysia will always be indebted to you, yang amat berhormat, for your leadership and your vision. ladies and gentlemen, the financial sector in our region has now reached a new stage of development. over the years, the role of the financial system has evolved, facilitating the various stages of development and growth. increasingly, the financial services industry is also becoming a source of growth, especially as several countries in the region are moving towards a knowledge - based and services - led economy. in the process, the dynamic changes taking place are also being driven by technological advances and an increasingly competitive environment. as financial restructuring and reforms progress to a more advanced stage, financial institutions are also moving on to make the necessary adjustments to become more productive, innovative, and strategically more focused. efforts are now focused not only on the creation of a sound and resilient financial sector but towards institutional development and capacity building of the financial sector to elevate it to a higher level of performance, efficiency and excellence. this represents an important phase in the development of the financial sector as highlighted in our 10 - year financial sector master plan that was released almost three years ago. it represents an important development prior to moving towards a more deregulated and liberalised environment. in this context, we are envisaging forward - looking financial institutions that will be able to face the challenges of financial liberalisation and globalisation as we progress into our next stage of development. in this context, leaders need to be visionary to see future trends focused on organisational vision, to stay competitive and be able to adapt rapidly to changes. in addition leaders need to take into account the corporate social responsibility so that the profit mindset is balanced against the objective of longterm sustainability. when we talk about enhancing leadership capability we are talking about leaders who are continuous learners, who are on the cutting edge of excellence, leaders who have strong convictions and beliefs, and yet having humility and recognising the need to reinvent themselves and inspire their organization to adapt to the new challenges and changes. this is vital if the financial services sector is to forge ahead and remain at the forefront of new innovations, an element that is critical to securing long - term

prepared according to international best practise, such as the ifrs 9, which will become mandatory in uganda, as in the rest of the world, from the beginning of 2018. a common set of internationally recognised standards for financial reports allows everyone to understand precisely what the information contained in them means. we also require high calibre professional accountants with the requisite expertise to prepare financial accounts to the highest standards. in this regard, i would like to commend the institute of certified public accountants of uganda for their efforts to uphold the highest standards of accountancy and financial reporting in this country. finally, let me conclude by congratulating all the companies which have won financial reporting awards this year. thank you for listening.