Collaborative approach to financial literacy

A national, unified and collaborative approach to financial inclusivity and bridging the gaps of financial literacy may be on the horizon thanks to a day-long series of panel discussions hosted by the Consumer Council of Fiji at Holiday Inn, Suva yesterday.

The program, appropriately titled “Better Together: The networked path to financial literacy” provided a platform for constructive discussion on key areas of improvement.

Open discussions were held surrounding topics of financial literacy at the academic level, the grassroots level, and in terms of policy planning and the way forward.

In his keynote address, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Professor Biman Prasad acknowledged previous and ongoing attempts to bridge gaps in financial literacy and promote financial inclusivity, including the work of local and international organisations.

“But despite all that work I feel that there is a lack of coordination, lack of a fully integrated, perhaps national or regional agenda, to ensure that there is a sustainable process of financial literacy.

“An educational process that promotes financial literacy and the understanding of the values and benefits of financial inclusivity for good quality of life, good business and good management of finances,” Prof Prasad said.

Forums with a collaborative, multisectoral and solution-focused agenda may be the way to discover and address knowledge gaps at a national level and design an integrated national financial education process.