Ambassador Angelina Eichhorst's speech for the Project Steering Committee of the EU funded regional project of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB)

Dear Governor Abdalla:

You are hosting us, in the vibrant city of Cairo where ancient and modern life come together so forcefully. Thank you!

And thank you to all the staff of the Central Bank of Egypt for all the work in organising and hosting this Project Steering Committee. I also know that May Abulnaga and her team have been most active in this project. Thanks to them also.

Also welcome to the representatives of the Banque de France and the Bundesbank as project leaders,

Esteemed staff from the African Central Banks and from the European Central Banks in your different capacities, I am glad so many directors and representatives are here today.

Our meeting in Cairo marks the renewal of a very successful programme that has helped bring all of you and your colleagues together in the course of the last two years.

Especially in a world like today's where so many things were taken for granted and now being questioned, it is ever so important to nurture good relations, to communicate, to find a mutual understanding, and to help and be there for each other.

This applies to the well-functioning of financial markets and to macro-economic stability which requires our close attention, watch, and our collaboration.

Today we are taking this regional approach between Central Banks a step forward, bringing together two very close continents: Africa and Europe.

As you know we decided to extend the timeframe of our joint work for 2 more years and with an additional EUR 2m. Above all this signifies continuity. Continuity that leaves the space for us to deepen our partnership.

It signifies Continuity of the EU as a predictable and reliable partner.

Together with our Member States, we use the full EU toolbox to foster prosperity and to help stabilise difficult situations where needed - from macro-financial assistance and budget support to de-risking tools for public/private investments and capacity development. Our macro-financial assistance to Egypt is reaching a total of 5 bn EUR, our second largest Macro Financial Assistance operation world-wide. Regarding de-risking tools, we are using, among other instruments, blending and guarantees to really help leverage investments in African countries as part of the EU's global gateway initiative. Investments for sustainable growth and an inclusive and green economy.

To ensure that investments can flow, this requires enhanced work on safeguarding macro-economic and financial stability, and Central Banks, you, play a key role here. In addition to the legal and institutional credibility of a Central Bank, we need to ensure the efficient functioning of the foreign exchange markets in our respective countries. To prevent crises and hedge against currency risks it seems ever so important that reserves, as well as foreign currency denominated assets and commercial invoicing currencies reflect the weight and share of trade and investment flows.

Christine Lagarde pointed out that a crucial ingredient for seizing a currency's full potential is economic resilience as well as legal and institutional credibility.

It is crucial that Central Banks are independent in the formulation of their monetary policy. Current debates in different countries make this very clear: Central Bank governors need to be protected from political influence. They need to exercise prudent and sustainable monetary policies that are credible.

Allow me to congratulate you, Governor Abdalla, for your effective monetary policy which is really helping reduce inflation in Egypt and for the way the Central Bank of Egypt has restored credibility in the international financial markets.

And in the European Central Bank's recent report on the role of the Euro in the world it has become clear that the Euro, despite numerous crises, has maintained its share in the global use of currencies in the last 20 years while others have declined.

In the EU we believe that we can master international challenges together and by working with one another!

Let me just reiterate, if there is one entity in the world that truly promotes collaborative behaviour and ever closer integration, it is the EU.

One of the Central Bankers told me that to her the great advantage of this project is that many different partners from the European side are in this programme, so the partners get the full range of experiences, and some of them fit better to their own challenges than others.

A real result of this programme is that, after a series of technical workshops, people simply got to know each other better. They build trust, even friendships. So when one needs to draft a new regulation and is looking for some legal advice or maybe the experience of a bank that has already implemented it, one can call a friend at the European Central Bank, or be it the Slovakian Central Bank, or the Bundesbank, and quickly gets advice. Or, in another case one picks up the phone and speaks to a good contact in South Africa, or in Morocco, or in Ghana, and this already helps.

So I hope that with this extended programme we can take this partnership to the next level and, in the next two years, build on shared knowledge, comparing and sharing experiences and lessons learnt and not only widen the technical toolbox but also deepen the personal contacts and networks that can help us all address major challenges to our financial systems together.

So I would really like to thank you all for your participation: the Central Banks of Angola, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania and Tunisia and of course the regional Banks: the BCEAO (Banque Centrale des Etats de l'Afrique de l'Ouest/ Central Bank of West African States), and the BEAC (Banque des Etats de l'Afrique Centrale/Bank of Central African States).

And of course, our partners from the ESCB (European System of Central Banks), Belgium, France, Italy, Germany, Lithuania, Portugal, Slovakia, and Spain.

Thank you all and I wish you not only a fruitful Steering Committee but also a great time in Cairo.