BDO Foundation and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) partnered with various local government units (LGUs) to implement initiatives aimed at improving the financial literacy of local government personnel and their constituents.

In partnership with the local government of Odiongan, Romblon, the foundation and the BSP conducted a three-day training of trainers session for local government officers, members of cooperatives, and representatives of communities.

The session aimed to equip participants with financial information that they can share with their respective communities, giving the people of Odiongan access to lessons to make informed financial decisions.

Empowering tool

“Today is a day not just for learning but also for empowering others through financial education. Echoing our goal to uplift the lives of every Odionganon, let us appreciate the importance of fin ed as a tool that can help our community reach bigger goals,” Odiongan Mayor Trina Firmalo-Fabic, in her address to participants, said.

The session covered financial literacy topics, such as financial planning, budgeting and saving, debt management, basics of investing, and digital financial literacy.

“There is strength in numbers. We hope to continue conducting these sessions and create a multiplier effect across local communities — to share knowledge that is not only engaging and informative, but also inspiring,” said BSP Economic and Financial Learning Office director Marianne Santos.

Capacity-building at the LGU level helps sustain the broader strategy of the BSP and BDO Foundation in enhancing nationwide financial education programs. This training of trainers in Odiongan is one of the interventions that the partners spearhead to continuously improve the financial literacy levels of Filipinos nationwide.