Era of peace and development - Governor

The country is now experiencing a new era of peace and development, having firmly put behind us, the turbulent three decade period that hampered country’s economic and political progress, Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal said.

Speaking at the 46th SEACEN Governors’ Conference which commenced last Friday, he said the country is embarking on a fast track development phase towards prosperity and evidence of that progress will be seen whenever one travels in the country.

“I eagerly look forward to interactions with my fellow Governors at several international fora, for a very good reason. As all of us know, being the Governor of a Central Bank is a highly stressful and tense occupation.

Each day, we have fresh challenges to face.

The challenges that our predecessors faced perhaps over a 10 year period, will be on our tables over the period of 10 days!

The contagion effect that would have been experienced in economies in times of turmoil over a period of two to three weeks in the past, would be upon us now in two to three minutes! Political developments are so rapid today and have such a huge bearing on economic matters, that some governments are even requesting their Governors to get political lessons! The pace at which world news filtered through to our predecessors in the 70s and 80s is “snail pace”, when compared to instant updates that we receive on our mobile phones even when we travel thousands of miles away from home.

The challenges and extraordinary developments that we face today, do not often have precedents, previous case studies, or text book solutions.

These pressures naturally take a heavy toll on Governors and I think it takes a lot of effort just to stay calm, cool and focused in the midst of so much uncertainty and turmoil,” he said.

Fortunately however, that gloomy picture changes when Governors meet! Our informal interactions as well as the formal parts of our meetings and conferences often give us the comfort that we are not the only persons who face such challenges.

“During our meetings, we share ideas; we compare notes; we learn from each other’s experiences; we see what works, what does not; we see issues and challenges from different angles; we understand the inner workings of different policy measures; we are reminded of unintended consequences; we are warned of possible pitfalls and deadly booby-traps. All in all, we gain strength from each other.

“That is why I look forward to these Governors’ interactions so much. These help me to re-focus, re-energise and re-invent,” he said.