Welcome
Ladies and gentlemen,It gives me great pleasure to be here at the University of Cape Town today. The University of Cape Town is not only the oldest university on the African continent, but is also renowned for its academic excellence. A stable ranking among the top rated universities in the world is testimony to your outstanding success. Moreover, UCT earned a reputation as one of the institutions exerting sustained opposition to apartheid, particularly in higher education.
South Africa and the South African Reserve Bank are important partners for Germany and the Deutsche Bundesbank. We share common responsibilities in the group of twenty. The 20 leading industrial countries and emerging markets have a particular responsibility for global financial stability and economic growth.
The Bundesbank has therefore chosen to post a representative to the German Embassy here in South Africa in order to foster our joint partnership.
All in all, plenty of excellent reasons bring me to South Africa, where I am very much looking forward to gaining first-hand impressions of the country and the University of Cape Town and to sharing my thoughts with you.