We have made constant and joint efforts so that the conclusions and recommendations left by ALSAI become a useful, guiding, helpful, and corrective tool. In view of the insofar experience, this combination is an essential component in the work of audit institutions. I have believed and still do believe that auditing is a key instrument, which serves to further perfecting public sector governance. The ALSAI has contributed and will continue to contribute to identifying various problems facing public institutions, divergences from legal and regulatory framework, with subsequent financial effects, and their correction, in accordance with legal requirements and international standards. Focusing on the future role of ALSAI, I am confident it will increase the contribution to perfecting the three main dimensions – oversight, analysis, and vision – of public governance. More specifically, •  With regard to the oversight dimension, the great dilemma is whether public entities are accomplishing their mission in detecting and preventing corruption;  •  With regard to the analysis dimension, the great dilemma is whether these institutions are making responsible decisions about economic policies, development programmes, operations and the achieved results;  •  With regard to the long-term vision dimension, the great dilemma is whether the right directions and future challenges facing auditors are properly determined.
The Central Bank is doing its utmost and intends to boost its efforts and the quality of these efforts by providing top quality and highly reliable public domain quantitative and qualitative information. Our research capability is one of our top priorities. This enhancement of our capability to produce reliable knowledge will benefit all discerning stakeholders including the policy maker (who we are statutorily committed to advise) and the potential investor (who abhors any vacuum of knowledge concerning the target location). Promoting a healthy business environment also requires action to reduce excessive bureaucracy, to increase the efficiency of our judicial system and to ensure that our legal and regulatory frameworks remain appropriately flexible. At the Central Bank of Malta we have taken initiatives to help the business environment by launching the Credit Register and by promoting the setting up of the Development Bank to give better access to credit for SME’s and to infrastructure investments on the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model. We are also piloting changes to pre-insolvency procedures in an effort to curb unnecessary liquidations and save businesses that deserve a second chance through financial restructuring. We are also leading efforts to amend legislation to achieve more efficient contract enforcement procedures to address the long duration of NPL’s on bank balance sheets. These initiatives will help us climb the admittedly steep ladder of international rankings measuring business efficiency.