The largest financial education campaign in Moldova was launched by the country's National Bank with the support of USAID.
In particular, on the International Savings Day, celebrated annually on October 31, the largest financial education campaign in the history of Moldova was launched. It will be conducted by the National Bank of Moldova in partnership with the Independent Analytical Center Expert-Grup with the support of the USAID Program “Institutional and Structural Reforms in Moldova”. The campaign's priorities were presented at a public event on Tuesday along with the results of a survey assessing the financial education of the Moldovan population. The event brought together Moldovan officials, representatives of the financial and banking sector, educational environment, civil society, economic experts and external partners. President of the National Bank Octavian Armasu noted that it is necessary to help citizens integrate more easily into the financial world, especially now when innovative technologies are developing at an accelerated pace. “It is important for society to understand the activities of the banking sector and what is happening in the financial environment. Thus, financial education is in this sense an absolutely necessary component of communication and has as its basis and priority the support of any citizen who wants to develop their financial culture,” the head of the National Bank also said. USAID Moldova Mission Director Jeff Bryan, during the campaign launch, emphasized the importance of understanding financial principles for citizens who do not have the necessary knowledge and skills to make informed financial decisions. “Financial literacy is not a luxury, but a necessity,” said the USAID Moldova director. As noted in the NBM, the launched national financial education campaign is addressed to all citizens, regardless of age and occupation, and is aimed at intensifying efforts for financial education in society. In this way, consumers will learn what savings and investment opportunities exist in Moldova, what is the relationship between risk and income, how to correctly compare different loan offers, what are the risks associated with cryptocurrencies, etc. This and many other useful information for making the right financial decisions will be presented in explanatory notes, video signs, infographics and video graphics, as well as in a web module that will be developed. The campaign will last 1 year, until the fall of 2024, and will cover the entire territory of Moldova. According to the results of a survey assessing financial education in Moldova, about 2/3 of respondents rated their financial knowledge at an “average” level. More citizens believe they have low financial knowledge (19.4%) than those who report above average knowledge (12.9%). Additionally, 86.5% of respondents indicated that they have a financial goal, and the top 3 concerns related to respondents' financial goals included: meeting daily financial needs, improving living conditions, and saving money for themselves or their own children for education /training, etc. Overall, financial goals reported by respondents largely reflect current concerns, but also very low concerns about investing and entrepreneurship. When answering the question about planning and management, the data shows that in 55.6% of households, responsibility for making daily decisions related to money is shared, and in 39.3% of households, decisions belong to one member. About 4 out of 5 households plan to manage income and expenses and/or keep records of expenses. However, 28% of respondents use a banking app or other money management tool to track expenses. The questionnaire also provides information on how citizens save, their pension plans, as well as their income, expenses and payments, etc. The sociological study was conducted on the basis of the methodology of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in September-October of this year on a sample of 1024 people aged 18 to 75 years from different regions of Moldova, with the exception of settlements on the left bank of the Dniester. Data obtained from the survey will be used as the basis for the development of a National Financial Education Strategic Agenda through USAID's strategic assistance and the financial education campaign launched today. // 31.10.2023 — InfoMarket
