Valentine Okafor
The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) is sustaining its advocacy of inculcating a culture of saving and investing in young Nigerians as it celebrates the 2023 edition of Global Money Week (GMW).
The event was held at the Exchange on Tuesday, 21 March 2023, to raise awareness on the importance of ensuring that young people, from an early age, are financially aware, and are gradually acquiring the knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviours necessary to make sound financial decisions and ultimately achieve financial well-being and financial resilience.
NGX, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and NGX Regulation Limited (NGX RegCo) partnered the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to educate over 100 students on the theme, “Plan your money, plant your future”, to further enhance investor education and financial literacy.
In his opening remarks, the Divisional Head, Capital Markets, NGX, spoke about the need to guide children in their formative years so as to be responsible citizens in the future. He emphasized that choices they make today will have a significant impact on their future.
“We must also recognize that our individual financial health is closely linked to the health of the planet and of society as a whole. The choices we make about how we earn, spend, save, and invest our money can either contribute to or undermine the sustainability of our world. As such, it’s essential that we all adopt a responsible and informed approach to financial decision-making that considers the impact of our choices on our environment and society.”
Speaking on other NGX-led financial literacy initiatives, Mr Chiemeka noted that beyond offering a range of educational resources, the Exchange has a comic book series named NGX StockTown with the goal of using illustrations to raise the next generation leaders who are financially aware, responsible and skilled economic citizens.
The celebration which culminated in a Closing Gong ceremony had the overall winners at the quiz session held at the Exchange close the market by sounding the gong. They were also gifted shares with the firstprize winner receiving N80,000 worth of shares while the first and second runner ups won N70,000 and N50,000 worth of shares respectively.
Mr John Achile, Principal Manager, Market Development Department, SEC and Mr Abubakar Albasu, Principal Manager, Head of Advocacy Office, Consumer Education and Evaluation Division of Consumer Protection, CBN, highlighted the importance of market regulation and investors protection. Mr Abimbola Babalola, Head, Market Surveillance and Investigation, NGX RegCo, delivered a presentation on the rudiments of money and the technicalities of the capital market.