A. Kuniyoshi sveikinimo kalba ES Dvynių programos projekto baigiamajame renginyje

Kalba sakyta anglų kalba, šis tekstas nėra kalbos nuorašas.

Dear Governor Dragu, Dear Ambassadors, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to express my sincere gratitude for your warm welcome. It is a great honour to be here in Chișinău today and a pleasure to participate in this event which concludes the EU Twinning project very successfully at the National Bank of Moldova.

On the first day of March this year, the National Bank of Moldova put into circulation a coin symbolising spring. And by doing so, it completed the coin series on “Holidays, Culture, Traditions of Moldova”. From a Lithuanian perspective, spring is also a special time of the year. One of the visible changes is that the nights are getting short, and the warmth injects life into nature. It is the likely reason why the very first Lithuanian poem, published more than two hundred years ago, makes a clear link between spring and joy.

But let me be more precise. Spring in my country’s culture stands for a change. In fact, a change for the better. 

A change for the better is also what fits the description of Moldova’s recent economic and political direction. I would like to elaborate on this before turning to the Twinning project itself.  

Last year, the European Council decided to open accession negotiations with Moldova. This was a landmark decision, which would further strengthen Moldova’s consistent commitment to become a Member State of the European Union. 

Now, let me mention some of Moldova’s recent economic achievements.

First, the inflation genie has been put back in the bottle. It is expected to fluctuate within the central bank target range this year, despite hitting record heights more than a year ago. Last year’s modest growth in output is expected to accelerate this year, while the implementation of the IMF’s financial programme continues to be well on track.

Second, Moldova has successfully been turning away from the russian energy supplies and increasing its integration with Europe. 

Third, Moldova has been stepping up the efforts to increase its transport connectivity with the EU. The economic relations with the EU have been strengthening for years. For example, Moldovan exports recorded around a 33% increase in 2022. Moldova has also made a very clear statement about the wish to become a part of the Single Euro Payments Area, or SEPA.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The contribution made by the Bank of Lithuania in the Twinning project is mostly visible in the sharpening of risk management tools. The implementation of a risk-based Solvency II capital requirements framework will serve as a platform for achieving new qualitatively different insurance supervision. This type of supervision not only applies capital measures in proportion to the existing level of risk but also fosters supervisors to take measures ex ante. I hope that the support provided by our bank during the Twinning project will smoothen the transition to the new framework.

Besides the insurance market, the Bank of Lithuania has also made its footprint in increasing the resilience of banks. We helped to develop a macroprudential stress test that takes into account an interaction between bank-specific risk and the wider economy. This type of stress test makes sure that the paradox of prudence is avoided. 

Dear Colleagues,

At today’s concluding celebration, everyone involved in this joint project can reflect on the months of hard work, in-depth treatment of the subject matter, and many discussions on different professional and personal perspectives. But I am convinced we all agree that this Project was a great success thanks to all our effort.

Last but not least, I would like to thank the National Bank of Romania and De Nederlandsche Bank for being reliable partners in the project. I am also extending my appreciation to all project managers, component leaders, experts, and other colleagues.

It was our Bank’s honour and privilege to be instrumental in implementing this Twining project.

Thank you very much.

Tarptautiniai ryšiai