Nepal Rastra Bank, the Central Bank of Nepal hosted the 36th SAARCFINANCE Group Meeting and 14th SAARCFINANCE Governors’ Symposium on 27 June 2018 in Kathmandu. The programs were focused on developing a common platform for strengthening Digital Payment System in the SAARC region.
The 36th SAARCFINANCE Group Meeting was attended by Governors and Finance Secretaries and other delegates from the Central Banks and Ministries of Finance in the SAARC region. Matters relating to enhancing coordination and cooperation between SAARCFINANCE members were discussed in the meeting.
Following the SAARCFINANCE Group Meeting, the SAARCFINANCE Governors’ Symposium, themed “Developing a Common Platform for Strengthening Digital Payment System in the SAARC Region” was held.
The Chief Guest Honorable Finance Minister Dr. Yuba Raj Khatiwada, Government of Nepal inaugurated the Symposium. Addressing the delegates, Khatiwada underlined the need for strengthened collaboration among the monetary authorities of the Member States.
Mr. Harish Natarajan, Lead Financial Sector Specialist of the World Bank delivered the keynote address for the Symposium. Similarly, H.E. Mr. Amjad Hussain B. Sial, the Secretary-General of SAARC delivered a special address on the occasion.
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The Symposium included three sessions. In the first two sessions, the representatives of each of the eight-member central banks delivered a country paper presentation.
The last session was a round table discussion on the Symposium Theme. The session was chaired by Governor Dr. Nepal with four panelists. Mr. Dasho Penjore, Governor, Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan; Mr. Shamshul Hasan, Deputy Governor, State Bank of Pakistan; Dr. Alfred Hannig, Executive Director of Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI); and Key Note Speaker Mr. Harish Natarajan of the World Bank were the panelists.
SAARCFINANCE is a network of sixteen members, composed of SAARC Central Bank Governors and Finance Secretaries.
