EDUCATION Minister Andrew Holness has given his stamp of approval to the MultiCare Foundation and Citibank initiative to bring financial education to Jamaican students.

Speaking at the recent closing session of the MultiCare/Citibank Financial Education Programme workshop, held at Holy Family Primary School in Kingston, the minister said that introducing students to financial education at an early age will better equip them to set financial goals, save and invest for their future.

The MultiCare/Citibank programme, meanwhile, brings financial education to primary and high school students in the 31 MultiCare-assisted schools in east, west and central Kingston as well as Greater Portmore in St Catherine.

Administered by the MultiCare Foundation, the programme is sponsored by Citibank with a donation of J$1.6 million through its Citi Foundation which supports initiatives that provide individuals with access to information and incentives that help them take control of their financial future through making informed decisions, acquiring and preserving financial assets, and responding to major life events that can affect income and expenses.

An estimated 2,000 students are participating in the programme which seeks to help build life skills among young people from under-served communities by teaching them the basics and importance of saving and money management as alternative models for wealth creation to achieve their goals.

The programme started in October 2009 with a series of workshops and is being conducted throughout the academic year. It targets students in grades one through 12, all of whom are expected to attend follow-up sessions each term. To date, workshops have been conducted on “Saving and investing for a better life” and “Managing money to achieve your goals”. In another few months, the focus will shift to “Budgeting and running a small business”.

“Principals, guidance counsellors and forms teachers in the schools attended have enthusiastically embraced this initiative while students have been eager and receptive to the information. And many who never did before, have already started saving,” said a release from the Multicare Foundation and Citibank.

“A big plus for the programme is that all workshops have been conducted by volunteers drawn from the wider financial community and relevant interest groups — all of whom have demonstrated enthusiasm and commitment to not only delivering the content, but to actively engaging the students,” the release added.

Citibank country manager Peter Moses said there was no questioning the value of the programme.

“Money management and financial planning are always topical lessons that should be introduced to children and young adults to assist them in developing skills to responsibly manage their personal finances,” he said.

MultiCare Foundation director Errol Miller, for his part, expressed gratitude to Citibank for partnering with Multicare to deliver the programme.

“As the MultiCare Foundation continues to provide our children with alternative models for living and the opportunity to grow into productive citizens, we see the importance of introducing them to financial education as an alternate method of wealth creation to achieve their goals. By providing our young people with these basic skills, they would be less likely to adopt undesirable lifestyles,” Miller said. “Children confident in their ability to handle money would be less intimidated by banks and other financial institutions, have faith in their ability to succeed in business and improve the quality of their life.”