close to the target number, we would not only need scaling up of efforts by institutions like aif, but also the involvement of many more such governmental and non - governmental organizations. our experience with the financial inclusion programs has highlighted that unless the intermediaries involved develop sustainable delivery models and are able to run these activities as a viable business proposition, success would remain elusive. therefore, apart from a sense of commitment, what we really need for these drives to succeed is a sustainable delivery model, which other institutions could imbibe from aif and emulate. it is, indeed, very heartening to note that the aif has chosen to focus on the subject of financial inclusion of urban poor for its annual seminar and i compliment the foundation for this. as you all know, financial inclusion has been a key area of focus for the reserve bank of india and i firmly believe that forums such as this provide us an opportunity to put our minds together to introspect on what more needs to be done to meet the ambitious goals we have set for ourselves. i, therefore, thank the organizers for inviting me and providing me the opportunity to present my views on the topic. though the indian economy has witnessed tremendous growth lately, vast sections of our society have remained excluded from the india growth story due to various socio - economic factors. it is ironic that despite our cities seeing widespread affluence, large pockets of financial exclusion should exist right at the very heart of these cities. every year, a large number of people migrate from villages to cities in search of a better life for themselves and their families. they take up non - contractual and non - permanent jobs of vendors, porters, hawkers, construction workers, domestic workers, rickshaw pullers, etc. these people need fast, low cost, convenient and safe avenues of savings, credit and remittances to meet their needs. however, in view of the non - permanent nature of their occupations, they frequently bis central bankers ’ speeches shift base within city or even across cities. bankers are generally found to be shy in providing them banking services, for obvious reasons. what do we mean by financial inclusion? before i turn to the specifics of financial inclusion of urban poor, let us spend a minute in understanding the meaning of the term itself. we have defined financial inclusion as “ the process of ensuring access to appropriate financial products and services needed by all sections of the society in general and vulnerable groups such as weaker sections and low income groups

zeti akhtar aziz : the transformation of labuan as an international business and financial centre speech by dr zeti akhtar aziz, governor of the central bank of malaysia, at the launch of labuan international business and financial centre, kuala lumpur, 28 january 2008. * * * distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, it is with great pleasure that i welcome you to the launch of labuan international business and financial centre. this decade has seen the labuan offshore financial centre demonstrate its ability to adjust and reinvent itself in a rapidly changing international and regional environment. this decade has also witnessed the robustness and resilience of the labuan offshore financial centre as evidenced by its ability to continue to expand and mature even during the most challenging of periods. the global and regional market place however, continues to transform, bringing with it new opportunities and challenges. to have the flexibility to benefit from the new opportunities and to have the capacity to rise to the new emerging demands and challenges, continued reassessments need to take place to rediscover new directions, build new strengths, new comparative advantages and to define our new role in this ever changing and more competitive market place. today we are defining a new beginning for the labuan offshore financial centre as it positions itself for a much larger role. your presence here today to share in this auspicious occasion is indeed appreciated. in providing the full range of financial services, labuan offers a total financial solution both in both conventional and islamic finance. labuan also has the top - ranked financial institutions that originate from more than 80 countries, including islamic financial institutions that also originate from different parts of the world. the labuan offshore financial centre has seen steady expansion both in terms of the number of players, the diverse financial product offering and the volume of activity. labuan today has also become a thriving regional business centre. it is making its mark as a regional base for the oil and gas industry and as an entreport for the regional triangle of brunei - sabah - philippines. its convenient location and excellent deep harbour are natural advantages. its modern airport which has been enhanced has also promoted increased tourism. being a duty free zone and a free port status has supported these activities. growth in these peripheral commercial and economic activity in labuan has provided the potential for labuan to succeed as an international business and financial centre. labuan benefits from being centrally located in the asia pacific region, a region that has been one of the fastest growing regions in