Absa Bank Seychelles launches financial literacy sessions for secondary schools across the country |08 October 2021

Plaisance

Absa Bank Seychelles has begun a series of financial literacy sessions and distribution of their first edition of ‘Things I wish a bank had told me: A guide to personal finances’ booklet to senior S5 students across secondary schools on Mahé in a bid to raise awareness on the importance of understanding banking and approaches to personal finances.

So far, the bank has conducted four financial literacy sessions – at Anse Boileau, English River, Plaisance and Beau Vallon secondary schools.

The visits form part of the bank’s commitment to boost financial education and our mission to act as a Force for Good and give back to the communities in which we operate.

“We firmly believe that financial inclusion and education leads to healthy financial decisions and that this journey should start early on in life. Everyone should learn the value of sound financial knowledge as more often than not we find people only learn about products and services such as mortgages, when they walk into the bank for the first time needing one,” says Amanda Bernstein, head of marketing and corporate relations at Absa Seychelles.

“Our young adults need to understand what banks will ask of them, how we operate, and what principles of sound finance management will put them in the best position when seeking support from a bank. We are very grateful to the Ministry of Education and the schools who have welcomed us, and we are looking forward to continuing this programme over the coming months,” Ms Bernstein added.

The booklet provides basic information on managing personal finances in an informative and entertaining way. Discussions with students include understanding how credit facilities work and understanding how assets are treated, among other issues of financial responsibility such as debt management, credit cards, and savings..

‘Things I wish a bank had told me’ is great for school leavers and adults alike and was launched in December 2020 by the Governor of the Central Bank, Caroline Abel, who also wrote the foreword for the booklet, along with the Absa’s managing director, Johan Von Schalkwyk. The booklet is also available electronically on the Absa.sc for download.

Covered in its pages are easy-to-understand information and summaries of different loan types, fraud prevention, KYC procedures and fun facts about banking that will make anyone want to dive into the contents. Any business interested in participating in the bank’s financial literacy roadshow are invited to reach out to the bank on customerservice.sc@absa.africa for possible collaboration.

The accompanying photos show Absa representatives conducting the financial literacy sessions at some of the schools.

Press release from Absa Bank Seychelles