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SPEECH BY MS GAN SIOW HUANG, MINISTER OF STATE FOR MANPOWER & EDUCATION, AT THE 8TH CITI FOUNDATION-SMU FINANCIAL LITERACY SYMPOSIUM, 10-11 SEPTEMBER 2021

  1. Hi everyone, welcome to the 8th Citi Foundation-SMU Financial Literacy Symposium. It is my pleasure to open this meaningful event.

    Financial Resilience in A Crisis and Beyond

  2. The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown into sharp focus the importance of financial resilience in times of crisis.

  3. At the national level, our financial reserves enabled us to not only meet the immediate needs of the current crisis, but also build capabilities to emerge stronger for the future. Financial decisions made decades ago and reserves painstakingly set aside by our earlier generations had allowed Singapore to respond swiftly and sufficiently today. What does this mean for us?

  4. The lesson we can learn is that financial resilience does not happen overnight. Our resilience as a society must go beyond a resilient government. We will be truly resilient only when we possess the collective capacity, down to the individual.

  5. A National Financial Capability Survey commissioned by MoneySense in 2021 found that about 1 in 2 Singapore Residents have developed a plan for retirement savings, with only slightly more than a quarter indicating that they are at least moderately confident about their financial plans for retirement. The survey showed that younger demographic between 18 and 34 years old were less likely to have a retirement plan and tend to be less confident in the area of retirement.


    Building Financial Resilience Through Financial Literacy

  6. This is why this year’s symposium theme of “Democratisation of Financial Knowledge” is ever more important. Financial literacy is the key building block of financial resilience. Our shared vision is to build a financially inclusive community, where everyone has access to information and tools to plan ahead and make informed financial decisions.

  7. This is also the goal of MoneySense, our national financial education programme. Launched in 2003, MoneySense, has continually adapted its approach to make financial information and guidance accessible to different segments of our population. We worked with industry partners to roll out nation-wide campaigns and ran dedicated programmes for specific population segments on a range of financial planning topics. We also developed digital services, so that the financial information and resources can be more accessible to everyone.


    Recognition of Citi-SMU’s Partnership

  8. The Citi Foundation-SMU Financial Literacy Programme for Young Adults has been a keen supporter of MoneySense, and a close partner of our My Money @ Campus events since 2018. The collaboration has allowed us to reach many students and young adults. I had the privilege of working with Assistant Professor Aurobindo Ghosh and his team in launching our first fully online My Money @ Campus campaign in February this year, and I heard it was well received, particularly the virtual games incorporating financial concepts.

  9. MoneySense is also happy to have supported key initiatives under Citi Foundation-SMU, such as FInHack, also known as Financial Inclusion Hackathon, as well as FInWR, which is the Financial Inclusion, Wellness and Resilience Survey. I would like to commend Citi Foundation-SMU for the good efforts in addressing financial concerns close to the hearts of our youths.

    Conclusion

  10. I hope you have a fruitful and invigorating time exploring the many facets of financial knowledge at the symposium.

  11. I wish you all the very best in your financial planning journey!