BDO Foundation holds financial literacy seminar in Tagbilaran
BDO Foundation, under a memorandum of agreement with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and the Tagbilaran City Government, conducted a three-day seminar on financial literacy in the city recently.
Tagbilaran City Mayor Jane Yap, BSP Deputy Governor Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, and BDO Foundation President Mario A. Deriquito signed the agreement in the presence of local government unit officials and their constituencies.
BDO Foundation aimed to bring the benefits of banking and finance to local communities in partnership with the government, high schools and colleges, community organizations, and the participating financial institution.
Taken up in the seminar were loans and other financial services for micro, small and medium enterprises. The participants were ordinary citizens, who own or plan to operate their own businesses.
The fishing community was well-represented. The 40 fishermen in attendance said the sessions improved their understanding of saving, budgeting, responsible borrowing, and financial planning.
All participants were given the opportunity to open accounts with participating financial institutions immediately after the sessions.
BDO Foundation plans to include the BSP E-Learning Academy or BELA in college. It is exploring the adoption of the program with the Holy Name University and Tagbilaran City College.
According to BSP, BELA is a free online learning platform that offers self-paced modules on personal financial management, digital financial literacy, scam prevention, retirement planning, investing, and other topics.
BDO Foundation is also planning to integrate basic financial education into elementary and high school curriculum.
The signatories to the agreement vow to continue collaborating in the effort to educate people on, and encourage their participation in, the country’s financial system.
[Photo Caption] BSP Deputy Governor Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, Tagbilaran City Mayor Jane Censoria Yap, and BDO Foundation President Mario Deriquito sign memorandum of agreement to bring the benefits of finance to local communities.