Global Money Week: SEC restates need for savings, personal finance

As the world celebrates the Global Money Week (GMW) from March 20-26 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has again emphasised the need for children and young people to develop sound financial habits, knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour from a young age.

This the Commission said will help them to know how to manage their personal finances throughout their lives and be empowered to make better financial decisions for their future.

Lamido Yuguda, Director General, SEC while commenting on the week-long commemoration of the event, stated that the earlier children & youth learn about money, saving, investment and budgeting the better they will manage their personal finances throughout their lives.

The GMW is an event organised by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) International Network on Financial Education with the Central Bank of Nigeria responsible for coordinating the event in Nigeria. It is an annual global awareness-raising campaign on the importance of ensuring that young people, from an early age, are financially aware, and are gradually acquiring the knowledge, skills, attitude and behaviors necessary to make sound financial decisions.

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According to the DG, “Plan your money, plant your future” is the official theme of GMW2023. This theme aims at raising awareness about the importance of adopting a responsible, informed and forward-looking approach in making financial decisions. It also recognises that future individual financial well-being is strictly linked to the health of the planet and of the society as a whole

“This year’s Global MoneyWeek2023 GMW2023 is a great opportunity for everyone to engage children, youth & young people in activities around the theme.

Yuguda stated that the celebration of the weeklong event by the Commission will include visits to schools in Nasarawa and Gwagwalada, a visit to the NGX by 150 students and ringing of the bell at the NGX among other activities.

Global Money Week (GMW) promotes efforts aimed at improving the financial literacy of young people. The ultimate goal of the campaign is to ensure that all children and young people have access to high-quality financial education, they learn about money matters and are able to take smart financial decisions that can improve their future financial resilience and financial well-being.

The week is the world’s largest money awareness campaign for children youth to learn about money managing skills through fun events and activities in over 100 countries worldwide adding that the earlier children & youth learn about money, saving, investment and budgeting the better they will manage their personal finances throughout their lives.

“We are proud to be part of this annual financial awareness campaign highlighting the importance of teaching children & youth about financial education & financial literacy. These sensitisations to Gwagwalada and Nasarawa to directly speak to the children and youths is another way of highlighting how important this is to the SEC.” he stated.

Yuguda emphasised that the Commission is encouraging capital market operators to develop technology so that the market will become more attractive to youths saying, “That is why we are improving our Know Your Customers; we are improving so many things to make it easier for them. That is why we are introducing these fintechs. We are allowing these fintechs to come because we see the fintech as an important gateway for youths to enter the market. We are conscious of that and we are working towards it”.

According to him, the commission is implementing various initiatives to ensure that products and offerings in the market are accessible to both the young and old which will further deepen the market.

Yuguda said, “The average age of that account holder was over 50, and that made us realise that the young people were not participating in this market and when young people are not participating in any market, that market is doomed to fail.

“And young people today prefer to do things on their phones; if you have to fill a stack of forms manually young people won’t do it. We want to make investing in the capital market a fun experience.”