Financial Literacy: Inspiring Stories

Muhammad Yunus, founder of Grameen Bank

Muhammad Yunus was born June 28, 1940 in Eastern Bengal (now Bangladesh), and went on to become an Economics Professor at Chittagong University Bangladesh. Yunus’s mother always helped any poor people that she could, so Yunus grew up with a dream to help the poor. His inspiration to develop micro-credit loans to poor people without requiring collateral came from speaking to a woman who made bamboo stools for a living. The woman would have to buy her bamboo from a middle man, and after having to re-pay him, she was left with little profit. Yunus’s initial tiny micro credit loans came out of his pocket and his practice of offering small out of pocket loans led to the formation of Grameen Bank in 1983. 97% of Grameen Bank’s borrowers are women. Grameen Bank focuses on lending to women because Yunus felt families would benefit more if loans were made to women. In 2006 Yunus and the Grameen Bank were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in efforts to eradicate poverty through micro-credit loans. The Grameen continues to serve 8.29 million borrowers in 81,367 villages throughout Bangladesh, and is helping borrowers people break the cycle of poverty.

Global Financial Education Program

The Global Financial Education Program (GFEP) formed out of a partnership between two U.S. organizations called Microfinance Opportunities and Freedom from Hunger. GFEP is supported by the Citi Foundation and is specifically set up for people in developing countries that live right below and above the poverty line. GFEP creates financial literacy curriculum and trains service organizations to use and teach it to people in low income households. The curriculum is developed to help the poor make better financial decisions by focusing on saving, using credit wisely, and borrow money with discretion. The uniqueness of GFEP is credited to its grassroots creation through using research, local surveys, and pilot programs. GFEP’s has trainers in a few hundred institutions around the world that have adapted and have taught the curriculum worldwide. The Nike Foundation is making is possible for GFEP to expand its curriculum to teach girls in Uganda and Burundi financial literacy skills. The financial skills curriculum will help them plan for and build a more successful future.

The Girl Scouts

The Girl Scouts is a girl’s organization founded in the U.S. in 1912 by Juliette Gordon Low in the hopes to cultivate leadership, responsibility, and good character in girls. The organization promotes the welfare of girls and works to boost self esteem levels and teaches values such as honesty, hard work, and cooperation through various activities to build good citizenship. The Girls Scouts also promote financial literacy education for young girls. By offering a financial literacy portion on their main website called Moneysmarts http://www.girlscouts.org/moneysmarts the Girl Scouts are helping girls of all ages to learn more about money management and financial planning. Moneysmarts helps build awareness and offers practical information on saving, earning, spending, and investing. These practical tips can serve as a foundation for the 3.3 million Girl Scouts in the world and help them gain greater financial stability in the future.

Daniel Britton, Author of the Financial Fairy Tales book series

Daniel Britton is a British author that worked in the banking and financial industries before working as a teacher and school leader. Britton acknowledged that there is a lack of financial education and knowledge so he saw a need to address these concepts and target young people. Britton holds that preparing young people with financial literacy tools can help them make better decisions in the future and build a portfolio. Britton decided to write the Financial Fairy Tales Books to help young people grasp finance concepts and plan their futures in a fun way: by reading stories. One of the books in the series, Dreams Can Come True is a contender for the USA Book News ‘Best Book Awards’ 2010. Britton’s stories can help bring awareness to both parents and children so they may become more financial savvy and build better futures.

Financial Literacy Program in Botswana

The Government of Botswana recognized the need to supply financial literacy education to its people because they discovered a lack of financially savvy Botswanans. To address and promote financial literacy among its people, the Botswana’s Ministry of Education teamed up with the Botswana National Library Services (BNLS). The two bodies are working together to educate secondary students on finances to introduce financial education to youth. The curriculum was developed and modified by Standard Bank and includes topics of Money and Banking, Saving and Investing, Personal Finance and Introduction to Business Finance. Each module is catered to a local Botswanan audience and includes simple instructions and information on how to be more aware of finances and spending. Standard Bank donated the modules, which came in the form of booklets, to the Botswana National Library so the materials can be used by all people. By keeping materials in the library, access to the learning modules is not an issue for those wanting and needing information on becoming more financially literate.