Obtaining and retaining the staff resources capable of dealing with Year 2000 issues will be another increasingly difficult problem. There is a limited pool of skilled technical staff to make needed changes, and demands on this pool are growing as the time draws closer. In the short run, the ability to add to this pool significantly through training is limited. Qualified outside consultants already are heavily committed and will become even more scarce over time. Obtaining equipment on which to conduct tests also often requires significant lead time. All of this suggests that controlling the cost of Year 2000 projects will be a problem for many institutions as resource prices are bid up. Already, we have seen many institutions increase their Year 2000 budgets several times, and by significant amounts, as they develop their detailed plans. Security also is likely to be of increasing concern as we move forward. As time pressures mount, there is a risk that shortcuts will be taken. The checking of credentials for new staff or outside contractors or consultants may be rushed and less rigorous. Date-dependent security applications may be turned off to facilitate testing. In an industry like ours, with so much interconnectivity, any compromise of security simply cannot be tolerated. BIS Review 87/1997  -3-  Every financial institution needs its own comprehensive project plan to address the Year 2000 problem. In the United States, bank supervisors have suggested an approach that includes a number of phases.
About overall economy, a more sustainable development should be ensured, relating mainly to better control on trade deficit, supporting the sectors that actually contribute or may contribute to increasing exports in the country. Public authorities should strengthen their commitment to developing the non-bank financial market, which gradually leads to reduction of economic dependence on the banking sector condition and improves access to financing of a higher number of private entities. In this way, a greater opportunity would be provided to the financial system to finance projects in the agricultural sector, which has a high potential for ensuring competitive advantages in the Albanian economy. Allow me to conclude by emphasizing the Bank of Albania’s willingness to contribute, through its policies on monetary and financial stability, to maintaining a better climate of sound development of the financial and banking activity, as a condition for a greater financial support to business development in the country. I think that this forum will make a valuable contribution to setting some concrete development policies and projects, about which, I believe that the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank will offer its own support and expertise. Wishing success to the proceedings of this forum, I thank you for your attention! 2  BIS central bankers’ speeches