Going forward, the passing by Parliament of The Banks and Specialised Deposit-taking Institutions Bill, and the Ghana Deposit Protection Bill, will be crucial to our efforts to ensure that confidence is maintained in the banking sector. The two Bills will, among other things, offer protection for the small depositor, and deal extensively with the problem of unauthorised deposit taking business.
Let me now explain our assessment in greater detail, starting with the economic analysis. Euro area real GDP grew by 0.4% on a quarterly basis in the third quarter of 2010, following exceptional growth of 1.0% in the second quarter. Recent statistical releases and surveybased evidence generally confirm that the positive underlying momentum of the economic recovery in the euro area remains in place.