Skopje, 22 December 2022

"A healthy and advanced financial sector is crucial for boosting economic growth. A sufficiently large, diversified, well-regulated and understood financial system can improve standard of living and promote social inclusion, thus reducing poverty", said Governor Angelovska Bezhoska at the panel discussion on Poverty, Economic Growth and Financial Sector held within the United Nations Annual Conference A view Beyond.

"In the Western Balkan countries, including ours, the financial system is bank-centric with the banks playing a leading role in financing real economy at a constant solid pace in the past few years of crises. The sustained credit activity, even in times of crisis, is largely due to the lessons learned from the global financial crisis worldwide and the strengthened regulation in accordance with the changes in international and European standards that have helped the banks respond to the challenges with stronger balance sheets and capacity to deal with risks", said Governor Angelovska Bezhoska.

Speaking about further support for growth and faster income convergence, the governor added that it is important that the growth of financial system, including the banking system, continues. "It is extremely important for banks to continue strengthening balance sheet resilience and stability, which, together with the volume of financial potential, is a prerequisite for proper credit support for the economy. Underdeveloped capital markets in the region need to develop and be a significant source of financing, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises whose access to bank financing have been impaired", she emphasized.

Governor Angelovska Bezhoska pointed out that although a healthy and developed financial sector cannot be a substitute for structural reforms that are crucial for long-term economic growth, it can still provide significant support for the economy, especially in such periods of crisis that emphasize the structural weaknesses of the economy and the need for energy and digital transformation.

The banking system has increasingly supported projects for energy transformation of economies, while green lending in the domestic economy has increased by 80% in the past three years. The fintech sector, which is still small but growing in the Western Balkans, is also important for stronger economic growth. The fintech sector has the potential to strengthen financial inclusion and advance the financial sector, making the further increase of financial and digital literacy important.

Besides the National Bank Governor, the panel discussion also featured the Finance Minister Fatmir Besimi, the Labor and Social Policy Minister Jovanka Trenchevska, the World Bank’s Lead Country Economist for the Western Balkans and Program Leader, Richard Record and the UNICEF Representative, Patrizia DiGiovanni.