Foreword  This book contains the proceedings of the conference on “Challenges for Monetary Policy-makers in Emerging Markets”, which was hosted by the South African Reserve Bank at Zebula Lodge near Bela-Bela in Limpopo Province from 29 to 31 October 2008. This conference was the second in a series of biennial conferences. In this scenic setting, several leading contributors to the literature on monetary policy presented their research findings and entered into debate on monetary policy issues that are of particular relevance for emerging markets. A mere six weeks before the conference a major investment bank in the United States with strong global linkages failed, creating severe shockwaves and an intensification of the international financial crisis. Although not planned as such, the conference therefore turned out to be exceptionally well-timed, providing an opportunity to assess the extraordinary policy challenges that have been confronting policy-makers, and the important linkages between financial stability and monetary policy. Several emerging-market economies, including South Africa, have adopted an inflation-targeting framework for conducting monetary policy. Accordingly, due attention was given to this framework, thrashing out how suitable it was for emerging-market economies, and how the changed global outlook for growth and inflation could be dealt with under inflation targeting. The degree of flexibility incorporated into the inflation-targeting framework was discussed and alternative frameworks for monetary policy were also explored. The impact of rapid structural changes on policy-making was examined, and so too particular country experiences, successes and challenges. I should particularly like to thank each presenter for the diligent work he or she put into writing the papers for the conference. I trust that this set of conference proceedings will continue to provide food for thought on issues that are relevant to monetary policy-makers in emerging markets.    Tito Titus Mboweni Governor of the South African Reserve Bank