Euro adoption - Franc-ly speaking
The euro changeover should not be seen only as a technical challenge but also as a social one that requires considerable social solidarity, according to two French experts here on a twinning project with the National Euro Changeover Committee...
The euro changeover should not be seen only as a technical challenge but also as a social one that requires considerable social solidarity, according to two French experts here on a twinning project with the National Euro Changeover Committee (NECC).
Project leaders Michel le Clainche and Veronique Benard were in Malta last week in the first of a series of visits until the summer, during which they spoke to main stakeholders like the Governor of the Central Bank of Malta and attended various sectoral committee meetings organised by the NECC.
In addition, 30 experts will be assisting the NECC with every aspect from public administration to communications and SMEs to banks. Apart from exchanging information, conferences and seminars will be organised.
The twinning project is being funded through the EU's Transitional Facility.
They expressed great admiration for the work already done here, singling out for praise the FAIR initiative, through which retailers and businesses undertake a commitment not to use the changeover as an excuse to raise prices.
France has been relatively positive about the euro, which still enjoys 76 per cent support, compared to 68 per cent for the eurozone as a whole.
"France undertook very long and intensive preparations for the euro and benefited from the fact that the issue was not politicised," Mr le Clainche said.
"The euro was seen as a matter of pride for the French, as a symbol of our being part of Europe. It was a national cause but without the backlash of nationalism."
The two main slogans used in France reflected the idea that the changeover process required a collective effort. Translated, they were: "The euro gives power" and "The euro is easier if we work together".
Ms Benard said the French also equated the euro with a modern approach, which was also welcomed. "We had to fight the idea that we might be weaker because we were taking on a weak currency, a fear that arose because for us, the euro was just a virtual currency and not the world currency it now is. So Malta will not have this problem. We had a lot more work to do," she said.
France's inflation was controlled at the time of the changeover but consumer associations, which have quite a strong voice, were very vigilant. There was no official attempt to freeze prices but professional associations and distributors agreed voluntarily to do so for three months prior to and after the changeover.
"This was used a sales pitch to their advantage," she said.
"Of course, once that period was over some prices went up slightly, mostly everyday items like milk and a cup of coffee. Of course, everyone blamed this on the euro but in reality, inflation was not really affected."
In France, the cost of an item in euro was far less than it had been in francs, while in Malta, the price will be more than double, so what was to them a psychological advantage will work against us here. On the other hand, the French were left with much smaller amounts in their pockets and retailers feared that they would believe that they had less money and therefore less to spend. In Malta, again, the opposite will apply.
The euro in France also ushered in a period of financial security and a deficit run up a few years after the changeover had to be quickly brought under control. The last major financial crisis was in 1993.
"There was certainly no downside to handing over responsibility for monetary control to the European Central Bank," she said.
Tourism also benefited. Apart from the obvious advantage of saving on currency exchange, visitors from the eurozone were able to compare prices to those at home.
"The impact was immediate and was uncontestably positive," Mr le Clainche said.
Did they have any advice for the NECC? Both experts highly recommend that the whole of society is mobilised.
"In France, we had literally thousands of people who volunteered to work with people at grass roots level to ensure that groups like the elderly could overcome their natural fear of change," Ms Benard said.
"People felt good about being well informed and especially about feeling better informed than others!"
"It is not too late for Malta but you should soon identify people who can speak to these groups in their own language, so to speak. It is very important that they feel that there is someone they can talk to about their fears and concerns, someone who will listen. You must be cautious not to have a sense of urgency as this could create a sense of panic and could be counterproductive," Mr le Clainche said.
"The wonderful thing is that you have so many tools at your disposal that were not so widely accessible to us five years ago, such as the internet and mobile phones. Your idea of having a euro calculator available via a mobile phone text message is wonderful!
"I sometimes pull out all my coins and see where they are from. It will be wonderful to see the Maltese cross and your Neolithic temples there," he said.
Project leaders Michel le Clainche and Veronique Benard were in Malta last week in the first of a series of visits until the summer, during which they spoke to main stakeholders like the Governor of the Central Bank of Malta and attended various sectoral committee meetings organised by the NECC.
In addition, 30 experts will be assisting the NECC with every aspect from public administration to communications and SMEs to banks. Apart from exchanging information, conferences and seminars will be organised.
The twinning project is being funded through the EU's Transitional Facility.
They expressed great admiration for the work already done here, singling out for praise the FAIR initiative, through which retailers and businesses undertake a commitment not to use the changeover as an excuse to raise prices.
France has been relatively positive about the euro, which still enjoys 76 per cent support, compared to 68 per cent for the eurozone as a whole.
"France undertook very long and intensive preparations for the euro and benefited from the fact that the issue was not politicised," Mr le Clainche said.
"The euro was seen as a matter of pride for the French, as a symbol of our being part of Europe. It was a national cause but without the backlash of nationalism."
The two main slogans used in France reflected the idea that the changeover process required a collective effort. Translated, they were: "The euro gives power" and "The euro is easier if we work together".
Ms Benard said the French also equated the euro with a modern approach, which was also welcomed. "We had to fight the idea that we might be weaker because we were taking on a weak currency, a fear that arose because for us, the euro was just a virtual currency and not the world currency it now is. So Malta will not have this problem. We had a lot more work to do," she said.
France's inflation was controlled at the time of the changeover but consumer associations, which have quite a strong voice, were very vigilant. There was no official attempt to freeze prices but professional associations and distributors agreed voluntarily to do so for three months prior to and after the changeover.
"This was used a sales pitch to their advantage," she said.
"Of course, once that period was over some prices went up slightly, mostly everyday items like milk and a cup of coffee. Of course, everyone blamed this on the euro but in reality, inflation was not really affected."
In France, the cost of an item in euro was far less than it had been in francs, while in Malta, the price will be more than double, so what was to them a psychological advantage will work against us here. On the other hand, the French were left with much smaller amounts in their pockets and retailers feared that they would believe that they had less money and therefore less to spend. In Malta, again, the opposite will apply.
The euro in France also ushered in a period of financial security and a deficit run up a few years after the changeover had to be quickly brought under control. The last major financial crisis was in 1993.
"There was certainly no downside to handing over responsibility for monetary control to the European Central Bank," she said.
Tourism also benefited. Apart from the obvious advantage of saving on currency exchange, visitors from the eurozone were able to compare prices to those at home.
"The impact was immediate and was uncontestably positive," Mr le Clainche said.
Did they have any advice for the NECC? Both experts highly recommend that the whole of society is mobilised.
"In France, we had literally thousands of people who volunteered to work with people at grass roots level to ensure that groups like the elderly could overcome their natural fear of change," Ms Benard said.
"People felt good about being well informed and especially about feeling better informed than others!"
"It is not too late for Malta but you should soon identify people who can speak to these groups in their own language, so to speak. It is very important that they feel that there is someone they can talk to about their fears and concerns, someone who will listen. You must be cautious not to have a sense of urgency as this could create a sense of panic and could be counterproductive," Mr le Clainche said.
"The wonderful thing is that you have so many tools at your disposal that were not so widely accessible to us five years ago, such as the internet and mobile phones. Your idea of having a euro calculator available via a mobile phone text message is wonderful!
"I sometimes pull out all my coins and see where they are from. It will be wonderful to see the Maltese cross and your Neolithic temples there," he said.