HSBC, Junior Achievement of Armenia to teach students money-management skills

PanARMENIAN.Net - A joint effort by two local organizations will help equip children as young as seven years old with the financial literacy skills they need to make wise decisions later in life about spending and saving money.

For the third year of this successful partnership, HSBC and Junior Achievement of Armenia will bring the innovative JA More than Money® program to more than 1500 local students beginning this spring. Through the HSBC Global Initiative - JA More than Money, in just two years more than 110,000 young people around the world have received relevant financial education that will help them embrace the opportunities of the 21st-century economy.

JA More than Money teaches primary school students about earning, spending, sharing and saving money and starts to prepare them for the world of work. When assessed by an independent evaluator in 2007, results showed conclusively that the students (ages 7-11) who participated in this curriculum in the United States demonstrated significantly greater knowledge and retention of financial concepts, compared to their non-participating peers.

“We need to reach children early and provide the tools that will help them make wise decisions about money,” said Mariam Adamyan, marketing manager at HSBC Armenia. “The concepts of financial literacy can be reinforced and built upon as these young students become adults and are faced with important financial decisions.”

In the first two years of this global initiative, nearly 4,000 HSBC employees worldwide have helped young people in 32 countries develop money management skills. As a result of the HSBC/Junior Achievement partnership’s success in improving financial literacy, HSBC has increased program funding over four years to $5.5 million, with plans to expand implementation to as many as 45 locations in 42 countries.

“To become financially literate, children need the opportunity to acquire financial knowledge over time - knowledge that is commensurate with their age and ability,” said Armine K. Hovannisian, Executive Director, Junior Achievement of Armenia.. “JA More than Money is a first step toward achieving a healthy relationship with money and toward children learning how to take control of their own future economic success.”