Printer Friendly Page
Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C)
April 13, 2007
Citi Supports Innovative "Financial Education for the Poor" Initiative in Pakistan
Citi supported an eight-day Financial Education for the Poor (FEP) Training of Trainers program, in collaboration with international NGO's "Microfinance Opportunities" and "Freedom from Hunger" as part of its efforts to promote financial literacy among potential microfinance customers in Pakistan.
This is yet another "soft" initiative designed to develop the local sector and is a complement to the Citi Microentrepreneurship Awards held in December 2006 where 40 winners took home US$ 35,000 in prize money.
"The Financial Education for the Poor Project," or FEP, took place in Islamabad from April 3-12 2007 and was led by trainers Lillian Diaz from Microfinance Opportunities USA and Sunil Diyanage from SEEDs International, Sri Lanka's largest MFI. The workshop was attended by 24 participants representing a host of NGOs and MFI's from across the country including Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF), Tameer Microfinance Bank, Pak Oman Microfinance Bank, Rural Support Programs Network (RSPN), Shore Bank, USAID and Pakistan Microfinance Network.
The program was inaugurated by Pakistan's first female Central bank Governor Dr. Shamshad Akhtar, who expressed her appreciation for the initiative and congratulated Citi on its committed efforts to develop the local microfinance sector. She also hoped that Citi would spearhead similar trainings in collaboration with the Central Bank. Speaking to the participants she said, "Citi has always initiated training programs with the intention of timely transfer of its expertise; this is another incidence where its commitment to the local banking sector is evident."
Pakistan is the fifth country to be targeted for the Training of Trainers program where participants in the FEP Training of Trainers Workshop will learn about financial education, develop skills in adult learning and facilitation, examine the FEP curriculum in detail, and acquire the necessary tools and skills to train other organizations in the FEP curriculum. Other country trainings have been held in Philippines and Uganda and regional trainings for Latin America and Asia were held in Peru and Indonesia.
The program was closed by the Central Bank's former Governor and renowned economist Dr. Ishrat Husain, who is currently also chairperson of Kashf Foundation, one of Pakistan's leading MFIs.
Danielle Hopkins, Financial Education Manager of Microfinance Opportunities in Washington D.C. and lead trainer, said, "We are delighted to introduce this program in Pakistan. It's stage one in what we hope is a long-term campaign. During the workshop we will build the capacity of local organizations to customize the learning modules to their context and then train other organizations within Pakistan in financial education. This cascade training approach will facilitate a sustainable strategy to increasing the outreach of financial education throughout Pakistan."
Pakistan Country Officer and Managing Director Zubyr Soomro said, "We are committed to augmenting the Government's efforts in developing the local microfinance sector; by facilitating basic financial education training, we hope to generate awareness of financial services among microentrepreneurs and contribute to the long term growth of their businesses."
Citi has been present in Pakistan since 1961. In its 45 year presence in the country, the bank has evolved into an active player and a trusted banking partner in the local market, evident in the strong relationships it currently enjoys across various corporate segments. Citi has also been an active corporate citizen especially in the local microfinance sector in Pakistan through grants to established MFIs and special programs including the recently concluded Microentrepreneurship Awards Program.
# # #
Citi
Citi, the leading global financial services company, has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth management. Major brand names under Citi's trademark red arc include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Citi Smith Barney and Banamex. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com.