Fiji Development Bank : FDB hands over books for Financial Literacy programme

10 May 2011

The Fiji Development Bank’s sponsorship of the Money $mart™ programme under the Commercial Studies curriculum in Fij isecondary schools, turns a new page as the Bank’s support extends to include Invest $mart™ in 2011.

To help students take on this next phase of learning, the Bank will hand over 33,000 student work books and 200 teachers guide and assessment booklets valued at $32,000 to the Ministry of Education on Tuesday, 10 May 2010.

Money $mart™ is a financial ltieracy programme developed by FDB and the MoE in 2006 and taught under the Commercial Studies syllabus to third form students. Implemented in 2007 into 162 secondary schools in Fiji and one in Tuvalu, the key objectives of Money $mart™ are to help young people learn about the value of money from planning to budgeting, differentiating their needs from their wants and saving for key events in their live s. The students also save money as part of their assessment.

Up until the end of last year ,Money $mart™ was a compulsory internal assessment task subject accounting for 30% towards the student’s Fiji Junior Certificate Examination marks for the Commercial Studies subject.

Early last year, the MoE made the decision to phase out the FJCE by the end of 2010 and in its place, internal assessment tasks will continue at the Form 4 level.

“The Ministry and the Bank recognized an opportunity here to expand Money $mart™ into Form 4 and I am pleased that to help make that transition for students, the Ministry with FDB’s support will now introduce Invest $mar t™ as well,” says FDB’s chief executive officer, Deve Toganivalu.

At the end of the Invest $mart™ programme students should be able to:

?recognize the importance of enterprising skills learnt at Form 3 Money Smart programto generate income to finance investment;

?investigate investment opportunities available in local financial institutions;

?select and use the relevant info rmation gathered to make informed investment decision; and

?develop a positive attitude towards maintaining an investment plan.

The savings started as part of Money Smart™ in Form 3 will also continue into Form 4 with Invest $mart™.

The student workbooks cover the form 3 and form 4 financial literacy component of the Commercial Studies syllabus. Since 2007, the FDB has invested close to $250,000 on resources for both, Money $mart™ and Invest $mart™.

On 20 April, the Association of Development t Fainncing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP) awarded Money

$mart™ as one of two winners of theH uman Capital Development Category in its annual Outstanding Development Project Awards which honours ADFIAP members who have undertaken and/or assisted projects that have created a development impact in their respective countries. The award was presented during the 34th ADFIAP annual meeting which was held in Kyrenia, Northern Cyprus from 20-23 April, 2011.

“Financial literacy is the cornerstone to helping our young people become not only enterprising adults but also responsible adults when it comes to managing thre i personal and/or ubsiness finances,” Mr. Toganivalu said.

NOTE:

PROGRAMME FOR THE EVENT

VENUE: FDB Board Room, 2nd Floor, Development Centre, 360 Victoria Parade, Suva (FDB Head Office).

11.00am Welcome & Prayer

11.05am Handover of books to Ministry of Education by FDB CEO Deve Toganivalu

11.10am Acceptance of books by MoE, Nemani Drova, Director Curriculum Advisory Services & Technical Vocational Education and Training (CAS/TVET).

11.15am Media Q&A

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