PRESS RELEASE
Bank of Albania organises the 12th South-Eastern Europe Economic Research Workshop, 6-7 December 2018

On 6-7 December 2018, the Bank of Albania organized the 12th SEE Economic Research Workshop. This workshop aims to provide a discussion forum on innovative research for issues related to central banking and to promote the exchange of views among researchers of the Bank of Albania, other central banks, academia and other research institutions.

Representatives from the European and regional central banks, academics from universities and international financial institutions and experts from the Bank of Albania attended the workshop.

During the two-day proceedings, 35 research works will be presented, of which 17 from Bank of Albania researchers.

The workshop is organized in sessions, according to prevailing topics in the economic, political and academic debates on the fields of economy, finance and central banking.

The research papers in this workshop present the opinions and views of expert researchers on fundamental central bank issues. These papers include the research carried out by the Bank of Albania as well as research carried out in other central banks and academic institutions. The participants in this annual event share their opinions and views in order to help and contribute to improving and strengthening everyone's work from a different perspective.

In his address to the workshop, Mr Sejko, the Governor of the Bank of Albania, highlighted that topics that will be discussed during these two days such as monetary policy, financial stability, and new methodologies in these areas are all quite present and important in the daily activity of the central bank.

Governor Sejko highlighted that Unexpected, sometimes new, global or regional events can shock a domestic economy such that authorities need to intervene and make decisions on certain issues.  Moreover, it is crucial that central banks focus on and use available information and methodologies making this information useful to policymaking. Also, the Governor added that some of the trends that will be discussed in this workshop have not yet reached our economies but will definitely have a significant impact on our economy and our financial system in the future.  He referred to central banking methodologies and new financial technologies as an example, considering them to represent a major challenge for central banks.

In this context, he said that scientific research within the central bank is a factor that plays a substantial role both in the process of a proper analysis of the data and of the impact, and in the proper preparation of the relevant institutional response and decision-making process. Precisely for all these reasons, research results regularly and actively feed into the decision-making process at the Bank of Albania. 

In conclusion, Governor Sejko thanked the attendees for their participation, inviting them to use this activity as a platform for strengthening the individual and institutional co-operation and to discuss relevant issues related to central banks and their activity.