I wish to extend a very warm welcome to you, our Honourable Members of Parliament, to this seminar, which is the 9th in the series. From the time you, Honourable Members, assumed office, over a year ago now, we have had many inquiries as to when we would hold this seminar. We are therefore very happy that this has come to pass and we thank God Almighty for making this happen. As Bank Management we are also very happy that many Directors of our Board have been able to attend the Seminar. This goes to show the great importance the Bank attaches to these seminars.

Honourable Members, why are these seminars so important, one might ask? Quite apart from the obvious that the seminars brings together virtually all the Backbenchers in Parliament — many in their own capacities and the others as Chairpersons of Committees, a simple but equally profound answer is that they are an embodiment of good governance. From our stand point they entail three main aspects, notably, enhancing our accountability and transparency, strengthening your legislative and oversight functions, and providing an opportunity for us to share our thoughts what legislative changes are being contemplated for our sector. Allow me to briefly explain each of these objectives.

Enhancing accountability and transparency: For the Bank the interaction with you, Honourable Members, the people’s representatives, at these seminars is an important additional layer of accountability to that of appearing before your various Committees at Parliament. We are alive to the huge responsibility placed on the Bank by being granted operational autonomy by the Republican Constitution. Therefore, the information shared and the ensuing discussions at this platform enables the Bank to demonstrate its accountability and transparency.

Strengthening your legislative and oversight functions: By you, our Honourable Members, being exposed first hand to information regarding how the Bank executes it’s mandate, which involves, among other things, collecting and analysing huge amounts of data and information about developments at the global and domestic levels as well as formulating and implementing monetary and supervisory policies, your understanding of these and other issues that have a bearing on how yourselves make laws and exercise your oversight function is enriched. Furthermore, it is our expectation that through these seminars you will, for instance, come to appreciate that for the Bank to achieve price and financial system stability, efforts of others, including yourselves, are critically important.

Providing an opportunity to alert you on upcoming legislative changes: In this particular, seminar there will be a short presentation on the envisaged changes to National Payments Act. The current Act came into force in 2007. Clearly, since then there have been a number of changes in the payment systems space which need to be addressed. It is also important for the successor Act to be forward looking. It is also important for Honourable Members to note that the current Banking and Financial Services Act (BFSA) was passed in 2017. It is also due for review given the developments in the financial sector since then and we will be coming back to you next year.

Honourable Members, as we meet today the global economy is gripped in what has been termed as poly-crises. These include Covid-19 pandemic with its devastating effects on lives and livelihoods, Ukraine-Russia war and its equally impact on notably oil and food, high inflation, which has induced tightening of monetary policies with the resultant rise in interest rates (which had for a long time been very low, especially for the advanced economies), and climate change. These are some of the issues that this seminar will deal with. As indicated in the Programme, the discussion will be organised around the following topics:

• An overview of the Bank of Zambia and its functions; • Recent macroeconomic developments; • Developments in the payment systems and issues around financial inclusion; • Cybersecurity and economic development; and • The role of Bank of Zambia in combating money laundering.

Honourable Members, as I conclude I wish to thank you once again for finding time to attend this seminar. I also want to express our profound gratitude to the Clerk of the National Assembly and team for wonderful collaboration in organising this seminar. My thanks also go Team BoZ for all the work that has gone into organising this seminar. We hope it will live up to your expectations. In this context, we look forward to candid and cordial discussions on the issues that affect our country and for which we have responsibility over.

Honourable Minister and Honourable Members of Parliament, with these remarks, it is now my great honour and privilege to declare the 2022 Bank of Zambia Members of Parliament Seminar officially open.