he Young Achievers Academy Head teacher, Mr. Rajab, handing out Equity Bank’s Homebank to a top student during the annual Global Money Week celebration held last month. The initiative saw the Bank educate 5,147 pupils and students from various schools and universities countrywide on money, saving and entrepreneurship
The theme for 2017 was “Learn, Earn and Save”. In Kenya, the initiative is coordinated through the Kenya Banker’s Association and this year they extended the drive by a month due to the school holidays.
During the period, Equity Bank employees reached out to 50 primary and 13 secondary schools across the country providing them with the basics of financial education, learning materials that suited their age group and empowering them to be prudent from a young age. For the primary school pupils, some branches donated piggy banks to encourage saving.
Equity also reached out to six tertiary institutions by interactively teaching the youth on the importance of saving, being financially conscious and investing early in life. They distributed financial related booklets that addressed financial issues that suited their age category. Equity Bank has published 3 books targeting young people. They are ‘Fun with Money’ for the 6-9 years age group; ‘Smart Teen Smart Money’ for the 13-17 years age group and ‘Take the Financial Lead’ for the 18-24 years age group.
The Branch Managers of the respective branches led their teams in teaching and educating students how money management can help them gain financial freedom, and prepare them for the future. They encouraged them to start making the right financial decisions now so they build their understanding of how to earn, save and invest money.
Global Money Week, is an annual global celebration set aside in March for youths to learn about money, saving, creating livelihoods and becoming financially literate.
Over the years, Equity Bank, through Equity Group Foundation and The MasterCard Foundation has delivered quality financial literacy training and services to women and youth throughout Kenya, and particularly those engaging in entrepreneurial ventures. To date, over 1.4 million women and youth have benefited from this training.
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Alex Muhia
Equity Bank Group
T: 0763 618871 Office 0763 026007
E: Alex.Muhia@equitybank.co.ke
E: corporatecommunications@equitybank.co.ke
Carol Wairugu
Ogilvy Public Relations Ltd
T: 0764515797
About Equity Bank
Equity Bank Kenya Limited is a financial service provider with extensive footprint throughout the whole country. Equity Bank Kenya Limited's parent company, Equity Group Holdings Limited, has banking subsidiaries in Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, South Sudan, Tanzania and DRC with additional non-banking subsidiaries engaged in provision of investment banking, custodial, insurance agency, philanthropy, consulting, and infrastructure services. Equity Group, has a customer base of over11million in the six East and Central African countries that it serves, making it the largest commercial bank on the African continent, by customer numbers. Equity Group is the largest bank in market capitalization in East and Central Africa.
The vision of Equity Bank is “to be the champion of social economic prosperity of the people of Africa” while its purpose is to transform the lives and livelihoods of the people socially and economically by availing them modern, inclusive financial services that maximize their opportunities.
About Financial Knowledge for Africa (FIKA)
Equity Group in partnership with The MasterCard Foundation launched the programme to deliver quality financial literacy training and advisory services to women and youth throughout Kenya and particularly those engaging in small and micro enterprises. The training covers budgeting, saving, financial services and debt management.
The training is conducted through either a 13 week classroom based model or the Equitel mobile platform which allows Equity Group to reach more people with the literacy programme. FIKA improves financial capability and individual and household financial security by connecting people at the bottom of the pyramid to expert financial education training as well as expanding access to financial services and products.
To date, EGF has trained 1,455,759 Kenyan women and youths in financial education. These women and youth have subsequently been able to access USD 680m in credit and mobilized USD 27m in savings. Additionally, 532,000 households have been financially included as a means to receive social and cash transfers.