s financial system, first as a commercial banker and now as a central banker, i intend to use this opportunity today to share my perspectives on the approach adopted by rbi as the regulator of indian banks for making the indian banking bis central bankers ’ speeches sector more inclusive and relevant to a large cross - section of the indian economy and society. i shall also delve on the challenges which the banking system is encountering in realizing the goal of universal financial inclusion and the innovation and reforms that may be necessary to overcome some of these challenges. i also wish to emphasize that having bright and innovative ideas do not have any meaning until and unless they are acted upon. i, therefore, compliment the organizers for including “ implementation ” as an element of the theme for the conference, as i believe that rigor in implementation is extremely important for realization of the dream of universal access to financial services and products. why is financial inclusion necessary? 9. the ilo declaration of philadelphia in 1944 proclaimed that “ poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere. ” it is universally agreed now that financial inclusion helps build domestic savings, bolster household, domestic and financial sector resilience and stimulate business and entrepreneurial activity, while exclusion leads to increasing inequality, impediments to growth and development. thus, financial inclusion is an important tool for poverty alleviation as it not only connects individuals to the formal financial system, but also inculcates savings habit among them. hence, financial inclusion or inclusive banking is a precursor for inclusive and sustainable economic growth. financial exclusion : dimension of the problem 10. an accusation that has come to be levied against the banking sector in the aftermath of the financial crisis is that it has failed to be “ inclusive ”. let me tell you that the indian banking system is not alone in failing the “ inclusion ” test. it is only the degree of exclusion that varies between different jurisdictions. the financial inclusion action plan ( fiap ) developed by the g20 global partnership for financial inclusion mentions that the universal financial inclusion initiative requires bringing the 2. 5 billion people ( or about half the working age population ) currently excluded, into the formal financial system. 11. that brings us to the question how inclusive is the indian financial system? census 2011 gives us some answers. out of 24. 67 crore households in the country, only about 14. 48 crore or 58. 70 per cent households had access to banking services. further, of the 16. 78 crore rural households only about 9. 14

alan greenspan : jackson hole conference - closing remarks closing remarks by mr alan greenspan, chairman of the federal reserve board of governors, at a symposium sponsored by the federal reserve bank of kansas city, jackson hole, wyoming, 27 august 2005. * * * the federal reserve will almost surely face as many uncertainties over the next eighteen years as it has over the past eighteen. technology continues to bring rapid change and, hence, considerable uncertainty, to the global marketplace. monetary policy, supervision and regulation activities, and payments system operation will need to be calibrated to respond to the influences of that technological change. other forces will be at work on the economic environment as well. the inexorable aging of our population will markedly influence the policy milieu in the years ahead. monetary policy, for example, cannot ignore the potential inflationary pressures inherent in our current fiscal outlook, especially those that could arise in meeting commitments to future retirees. however, i assume that these imbalances will be resolved before stark choices again confront us and that, if they are not, the fed would resist any temptation to monetize future fiscal deficits. we had too much experience with the dangers of inflation in the 1970s to tolerate going through another bout of dispiriting stagflation. the consequences for both future workers and retirees could be daunting. nearer term, the housing boom will inevitably simmer down. as part of that process, house turnover will decline from currently historic levels, while home price increases will slow and prices could even decrease. as a consequence, home equity extraction will ease and with it some of the strength in personal consumption expenditures. the estimates of how much differ widely. the surprisingly high correlation between increases in home equity extraction and the current account deficit suggests that an end to the housing boom could induce a significant rise in the personal saving rate, a decline in imports, and a corresponding improvement in the current account deficit. whether those adjustments are wrenching will depend, as i suggested yesterday, on the degree of economic flexibility that we and our trading partners maintain, and i hope enhance, in the years ahead. on monetary policy, i envision a continuous refinement of our risk - management paradigm. i presume maximum sustainable economic growth will continue to be our goal, with price stability pursued as a necessary condition to promote that goal. to date, we have chosen not to formulate explicit inflation targets, in part, out of concern that they could inhibit