Trade unions helped workers by campaigning to protect their rights, improve their conditions and boost their bargaining power in the workplace. They also provided direct financial support to unemployed workers, through an early form of unemployment insurance, to smooth the income consequences for workers of job loss. The National Insurance Act (1911) and the Beveridge Report (1942) subsequently made this a responsibility of the state and put it on a comprehensive footing. th  This was part of a wider-ranging shift in the role played by the state in society from the 17 century onwards. th  State spending as a proportion of national income rose from around 1% in the 16 century to around 12% in th  th  th 39  the 18 , 14% in the 19 and 33% in the 20 . It financed social infrastructure of various kinds supporting  those facing greatest hardship. This ranged from social housing to healthcare to income support. Its effect was to cap the downside, recessionary risk to individuals, economies and societies. 40  Another form of institutional support came from the creation of state-owned and/or central banks. The Bank th  of England was set up at the end of the 17 century to manage the government’s debt and safeguard the nation’s currency and finances. Over the course of subsequent centuries, this role has expanded.
First, it requires the active involvement of many different stakeholders, in particular Government agencies and very often a variety of NGOs, as well as financial institutions with specialized skills and knowledge. Second, the state of economic and social development of a society is an  BIS Review 88/2010  1  important determinant on the level and quality of financial inclusion. Third, what constitutes acceptable level of inclusion, in terms of access to finance, protection of personal rights and liberties, or assurance of retirement and healthcare benefits varies from one jurisdiction to another. For the reasons that I mentioned, there is no uniform global benchmark that can be used as a successful model for financial inclusion programs. Success stories and experiences are dispersed and often go unrecorded and to further the cause we need to reveals this situation. The financial inclusion agenda requires a systematic and internationally-recognized set of financial inclusion indicators that is meaningful and capable of assisting us in formulating developmental policies. Furthermore, enormous efficiency gains from the availability of such indicators can both reduce the cost of research and implementation as well as increase the effectiveness of the delivery and execution of the policies. Lessons learned in using financial inclusion data in the Malaysian context Let me to briefly share some of the lessons we have learnt in terms of using data to improve the policy formulation process, and develop a more efficient and inclusive financial sector.