The three-days 32^nd Annual Meeting of the South Pacific Central Bank Governors Annual Meeting ended in Nuku’alofa today, 17 November 2017.

It is the second time that the National Reserve Bank of Tonga (NRBT) has hosted the South Pacific Central Bank Governors Annual Meeting.

Attending this year’s annual meeting were the governors of the Reserve Bank of Australia, Reserve Bank of New Zealand, Reserve Bank of Fiji, Bank of Papua New Guinea, Central bank of Samoa, Central Bank of Solomon Islands, Banco Central de Timor-leste and the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu

The Governor of NRBT, Ngongo Kioa, chaired the meeting, and on the first day of session he gave a brief outline of the agenda of the three days meeting.

There was a strict restriction on who could attend some of the sessions during the three-days meeting.

On the first day, 15 November, there were presentations from representatives of commercial banks’ regional head offices, detailing their plans to contribute to the economic and social development of the Pacific region.

There were also sessions on financial issues such as responses to de-risking (closing of the bank accounts of foreign exchange dealers and money transfer operators), promotion of financial inclusion facilitating national payment system, capital markets development, and the development of sustainable and trade finances.

On the final day there will be a session on the primary role of the Central Banks, the conduct of monetary policy and its transmission to foster economic development, and at the same time maintain financial stability.