Ariff Ali: Reserve Bank of Fiji August 2016 - July 2017 Annual Report

Presentation by Mr Ariff Ali, Governor of the Reserve Bank of Fiji, to the Standing Committee on Economic Affairs, Suva, 5 April 2018.

The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.

1.         Introduction

Thank you Honourable Chair, and Honourable Members for the invitation to present the Reserve Bank of Fiji's Annual Report for the period 1 August 2016 to 31 July 2017, to the Standing Committee on Economic Affairs.

I had presented an extensive background to the Standing Committee last year on the role of central banks, and the functions of the RBF as stated in the RBF Act and the 2013 Constitution.  However, I would wish to re-iterate as stated last year that central banking is not for the faint of heart as Alice Rivlin so aptly said, "The job of the central banks is to worry".

Honourable members, as I had highlighted in my presentation to you in 2017, the RBF is tasked to maintain:

 (i)          Price stability - ensuring that inflation is low and stable;

(ii)          External (currency) stability - that foreign reserves level are comfortable; and

(iii)          Financial stability - that our financial system is strong and robust.