Governor State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Yaseen Anwar has said that it is our duty to transform the country into a truly developed state as envisioned by father of the nation, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Speaking at the National flag hoisting ceremony held here at the SBP on Tuesday, he paid glowing tributes to the Quaid, under whose inspiring leadership, statesmanship, wisdom and vision, the first ideological state of the world came into being on 14th August, 1947.
He said that the State Bank had been working for the welfare of all communities in line with the Quaid's vision. He further said that financial inclusion is a core component of SBP's financial sector development strategy. "It envisages transforming the financial market into an equitable system with efficient market-based financial services to the otherwise excluded poor and marginalised population including women," he added. Anwar said that the State Bank would keep on working with all stakeholders to ensure that the financial system was well positioned to meet the growing needs of the economy and for achieving "our shared goals of economic growth and prosperity".
He said the SBP had been striving to fulfil the objectives of monetary policy ie maximising production/employment while ensuring price stability. "It's true that our economy is going through testing times; but let me just assure you that Pakistan holds enormous potential for economic growth," he added. He said that the country had a well-developed banking sector and financial infrastructure which helped in meeting the credit demand of our productive sectors.
"The banking system is largely responsive to the needs of the growing economy. Our banks are considered safe, relative to some of the advanced nations, where confidence in financial institutions has dwindled as a result of the recent financial crises. People still feel safe to keep their hard earned savings in banks here," Anwar added.
He said that within a short period, the branchless banking deployments with 26,954 active agents offering low-cost services all over the country, including the neglected areas, had surpassed more than 10,000 branch network of banks. "As a result of these low-cost, efficient financial services being offered at convenient locations, the quarterly volume of transactions has reached to 28 million totalling Rs 115 billion. The average size of these transactions is Rs 4,000 which shows that technology is reaching out to the previously unbanked and marginalised segments of the society," he added.
"This momentous occasion compels me to urge upon all employees of the State Bank to continue to stride for transforming this prestigious institution into the best central bank of the region," the SBP Governor said. Later, Yaseen Anwar inaugurated a special exhibition organised by the SBP Museum and Art Gallery Department.
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