The central bank’s role is to create an enabling environment for innovation to mushroom. In this environment, many will flourish but bankers who will really thrive will be those who are agile, pragmatic and flexible. I am optimistic, as bankers in Malaysia are well placed to do this. Most bankers are highly skilled. As at end of 2017, high-skilled workers formed around 75% of the banking workforce. The salaries of bankers are also supported by relatively high levels of productivity. If there is any profession that is able to quickly adapt for the future, I believe it is the banking sector. This is proven by data. Over the last three years, the banking sector has created close to 20,000 jobs, reflecting its continued ability to anticipate and address shifts in the workforce needs. As job functions evolve, some will be dislocated. In this respect, it is critical for the industry to have in place mechanisms that support workforce transition, through retraining, reskilling and outplacement assistance. To facilitate this, in collaboration with the industry, Bank Negara Malaysia will be working to formulate an assessment of the current and future state of the banking workforce. A report is expected to be published by the end of the year. The assessment will include identifying the quantum and nature of jobs that are potentially at risk of displacement in the coming years. This should assist the industry in evolving complementary job roles, and formulating strategies to facilitate staff transition to new roles.
This study being presented today is, therefore, a welcome opportunity to reflect on the progress since 2009. Financial institutions have a role to play in ensuring financial services and products are available at reasonable terms, including fair and practical know your customer (KYC) assessments, the use of alternative collateral and flexible lines of credit to mention, but a few. To enhance income-generating activities from survival level to strong and viable businesses, in particular for women led enterprises, access to credit, banking and financial services and facilities is essential to fully develop small scale to businesses. The firm, robust and sustainable growth can only be founded on strong and viable Small and Medium Enterprises hence the need to financially empower enterprises is cardinal through financial inclusion. This lack of access to finance by our entrepreneurs is a major concern for both, the Bank of Zambia and Government. Ladies and Gentlemen, Allow me to outline some of the measures the Bank has been putting in place to accelerate access to finance for all citizens generally, and in particular for women The Bank of Zambia is the lead implementer of the Financial Sector Development Plan on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Zambia. As you may be aware, the Zambian government formulated the FSDP as a comprehensive strategy for addressing challenges in the Zambian financial sector. Under the second phase of the FSDP, access to finance by the various strata of society, including access based on gender is identified as a key challenge to be addressed.