KARACHI – The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) announced on Monday the launch of a comprehensive mass media campaign to raise awareness and promote the National Financial Literacy Program (NFLP), which aims to enhance financial education and empower individuals across the country.
The NFLP, which was initially introduced on a pilot basis in August 2017 across 77 districts, is now entering its second year of implementation. With the expansion of its scope, the program will be rolled out to all 158 districts in Pakistan, ensuring that financial literacy reaches a wider audience.
The primary goal of the NFLP is to provide basic financial education to unbanked and low-income segments of the population, with a special focus on youth and women. The program receives funding from the Asian Development Bank’s ‘Improving Access to Finance Facility’ and employs a unique public-private model. This model involves collaboration with banking institutions and SBP-BSC field offices to deliver NFLP messages to remote areas, aiming to reach one million beneficiaries over five years.
NFLP offers essential education on various financial themes, including budgeting, savings, investments, debt management, consumers’ rights and obligations, Islamic banking, branchless banking, and currency management. This knowledge is imparted through dedicated half-day classroom training sessions.
The launch of the mass media campaign, scheduled for January 15, 2019, will utilize print, radio, and social media to spread the message of financial literacy across the nation. By sensitizing the masses about the program’s on-ground execution, the SBP intends to ensure that more individuals have access to crucial financial education and make informed decisions regarding financial and allied services.
The NFLP campaign aspires to foster innovation, enhance competitiveness, and improve the efficiency of the financial industry. Ultimately, the aim is to provide better financial services to a more financially educated population.
In addition to the media campaign, the SBP is set to introduce a dedicated NFLP toll-free helpline and a website on January 15, 2019. These resources will serve as information hubs for the public, offering insights into the program’s features, schedules for ground training sessions, and any other information required.
Speaking about the launch of the mass media campaign, an SBP spokesperson stated, “Financial literacy is a crucial aspect of economic development. By equipping individuals with the knowledge and skills necessary to make sound financial decisions, we can help improve the overall economic well-being of our citizens. The NFLP is our flagship program aimed at achieving this goal, and the mass media campaign is a significant step towards ensuring its success.”
With the NFLP mass media campaign set to roll out in the coming months, the State Bank of Pakistan is taking a proactive stance to promote financial literacy and empower individuals, particularly those from underprivileged backgrounds. Through the expansion of this program and the innovative use of media, Pakistan moves one step closer to a more financially educated and economically prosperous future.
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