Jessica Chew Cheng Lian: Financial inclusion strategies in ASEAN economies Speech by Ms Jessica Chew Cheng Lian, Assistant Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia (Bank Negara Malaysia), at the ASEAN Financial Inclusion Forum, Kuala Lumpur, 25 April 2017. * * * It is a great honour for Bank Negara Malaysia to host the first ASEAN Financial Inclusion Forum. We warmly welcome you to Kuala Lumpur. Let me also especially thank the distinguished speakers from Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand; and experts from AFI, UNCDF and the World Bank for graciously taking the time to share your invaluable experience in pursuing financial inclusion strategies with participants of this Forum. ASEAN today is one of the fastest-growing and most dynamic regions in the world. We are home to 630 million people and a burgeoning middle class, with individual economies that are diverse in terms of demography, income level, resource endowment, financial sector development; and economic size, structure and systems. A vibrant SME sector contributes 50 to 80 percent of ASEAN’s workforce and accounts for 96 percent of enterprises in the region, linked by more extensive cross-border production networks and the intensification of intra-regional trade and investment activities. Growth for the region is still expected to outperform average global growth in 2017 and 2018, and this is expected to be sustained going forward.
Minister, this Loan Scheme being launched today provides a real opportunity for human capital development, which is necessary for national development. It enables children who would otherwise be excluded from the educational system have decent opportunities to receive education, as their parents can now access loans specifically targeted at meeting their educational expenses. Ladies and Gentlemen, a nation’s development depends on the levels of skills among its people and it is our expectation that the launch of this Scheme will contribute towards this noble cause. To this end, I would like to encourage parents and guardians to use the Student Loan Scheme in order to realise the vision of educating their children. Chairperson, what we are witnessing today represents an initiative by banks to respond to the needs of the community. As the Central Bank, we commend your bank for this initiative, which was borne out of the identified need to develop financial products that address problems in our society. Chairperson, Ladies and Gentlemen, let me end by reminding players in the banking sector that as new products and services emerge, different or heightened levels of risk also emerge. The challenges that financial innovation poses for public policy and the regulatory framework in ensuring financial stability are enormous and cannot be over looked. In this regard, let me call upon the management of Indo-Zambia Bank to not only look at the benefits, but more also on the risks that accompany financial innovation.