One of things I regret not learning early in life is proper personal finance management. I wish I knew more about wise budgeting, saving, and investing when I started working and receiving salaries. I believe that would have effectively guided me and my husband in handling our finances better when we got married and started a family 23 years ago.
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| we all want the best for our families the question is: what are we doing about it? photo credit: www.woodcome.com |
Still, it's never too late to learn anything as long as you're willing to do so and we've pursued financial literacy (read my related blog posts, here) with a passion when we were finally introduced to it several years ago. As a parent, I am thankful that I can now to help steer my children towards making good financial decisions while they are still young. The learnings never stop though and I always welcome new opportunities to know more about eventually achieving financial freedom someday.
This coming first week of October, the Philippine Life Insurance Association (PLIA) is marking "Life Insurance Consciousness Week"with a string of activities aimed to further boost financial literacy in the country and help Filipinos understand how life insurance can help us fulfill all our life goals.
PLIA President Gregorio Mercado acknowledges that financial literacy among Filipinos remains low thus the need to constantly address this concern. "PLIA strives to contribute to the Insurance Commission's efforts to propagate the importance of financial literacy," he explained. "Moreover, it's a building block for nation-building, because teaching Filipinos how to manage their finances better with the help of different instruments, such as life insurance, will certainly boost our economy."
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| representatives of FALIA with Commissioner Dooc (second from left) and PLIA President Gregorio Mercado (third from left) |
Insurance Commissioner Emmanuel Dooc pointed out that Filipinos have been so used to borrowing money every time a crisis happens. This, he said, has got to change. He also urged everyone to use credit cards responsibly. As for those who fall for get-rich schemes, "Do not be attracted by promises of high yields. You might be victimized by scams then your savings might be lost because of greed," he counseled.
One of the highlights of this year's celebration of Life Insurance Consciousness Week is PLIA's partnership with the Foundation for the Advancement of Life and Insurance Around the World (FALIA). This is a public interest foundation based in Japan that was established in 1970 to contribute to the development of Asia's insurance industry. PLIA, on the other hand, is the umbrella organization of all life insurance companies operating in the Philippines, which has already been in existence for 64 years.
The two organizations will be holding a series of lectures for students in different public and private high schools in the National Capital Region (NCR) in the coming weeks. I wish we had that when I was still a student!
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| planning for the future has to be done properly learn how, now! photo credit: forbes.com |
The lectures will focus on life insurance and how it benefits individuals and their families as well as how it supports the country's national development. There will also be an essay writing competition until December 2016 where three winners will get to enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip to Japan while other selected best essays can win up to P30,000 in cash.
The project further seeks to correct the common misconception among young people that life insurance is only for older people by showing that investing can actually help EVERYONE achieve long-term goals and deal with unexpected events.
In the meantime, to supplement the FALIA-PLIA essay writing contest, PLIA will also hold an online Facebook contest dubbed #Lifegoals to extend the insurance awareness campaign beyond the partner schools. Through this initiative, participants can share how life insurance can help them meet their goals and aspirations in life.
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| beyond saving money, everybody needs to learn how to invest photo credit: twocents.lifehacker.com |
PLIA will also be launching a Financial Education Curriculum for Philippine Secondary Schools that will be available via an online portal soon. It will cover topics such as identifying financial needs over the short, medium, and long-term, and knowing which financial products (including their costs) are most appropriate for individual situations.
It is hoped that the above-mentioned activities will not only raise the level of awareness among high school students on the importance and benefits of life insurance, but also help educate other individuals and their families as well as contribute to the country's national development.
Life Insurance Consciousness Week will conclude with PLIA's annual CSR activities that include a book drive and annual bloodletting drive in partnership with the Philippine Red Cross. Mercado invites everyone to take part in the activities because, "No matter what your life goals are, financial literacy will surely help you get there, and there is no better time to start than now. PLIA is committed to doing its part to make sure that this will see fruition."
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