Presentation of “The abecedary of economy for children up to 12 years old”
14/04/2022 - Press Releases
- A dictionary of financial literacy for children aged 9-12 years
- Available in all bookstores
- Also available on the Bank of Greece website
The “abecedary of economy”, an original dictionary of financial literacy for primary school students, was presented today at the Museum of the Bank of Greece.
The book, a publication of the Centre for Culture, Research and Documentation of the Bank of Greece, was written by Nikolaos D. Philippas, Professor of Finance at the University of Piraeus, and illustrated by Alexia Lougiaki. It comprises 124 key entries from the disciplines of economics and finance, accompanied by nine short and comprehensive stories which provide deeper insights into the concepts mentioned therein. The writing of the book was made possible thanks to the substantial contribution of the Economic Analysis and Research Department of the Bank of Greece.
Presentation of the book
In today’s event at the Museum of the Bank of Greece, Ms Christina Papaconstantinou, Deputy Governor of the Bank of Greece, gave a welcome address, stressing the importance of providing children with basic economic knowledge, so that they can efficiently manage their expenses and earnings later in life, and make sound financial decisions about their future. Ms Papaconstantinou stressed that “the Bank of Greece will keep contributing actively to the education of young people, so that they grow into responsible, prudent and well-informed participants in financial life and reality”.
In his welcome address, Professor Νikolaos D. Philippas pointed out that “the 21st century is marked by intense financial turbulence and rapid changes. Hence, our youth will need new skills in order to deal with this new and complex reality. Financial literacy is one of them and ‘The abecedary of economy for children up to 12 years old’, published under the auspices of the Bank of Greece, will contribute in this direction”.
The presentation of the book was attended by 6th-grade students of the “Ellinogermaniki Agogi” primary school. The students posed questions to the contributors of the book, who highlighted the importance of introducing money management to children of that age in a proper and timely manner, so that they can make informed financial decisions during their adult life.
The importance of financial literacy
As the Governor of the Bank of Greece Yannis Stournaras mentions in the book’s foreword, “the younger the students are, the easier it is for them to embrace basic financial concepts and receive the proper education that will turn them into financially sensitive and well-informed citizens”. He adds that publishing this dictionary is “a small but important endeavour to diffuse financial knowledge to children, while at the same time it is a step towards developing a national roadmap, a project already underway at the Bank of Greece”.
Prominent international organisations, such as the OECD, the World Bank and UNICEF, have opined that financial literacy is a lifelong, ongoing and continuous process that should start from primary school. To this end, the Bank of Greece has undertaken various initiatives, implementing actions to promote financial literacy among students.
Such actions include publications, such as the book presented today, as well as educational events in cooperation with the European Central Bank and the other central banks of the European Union, e.g. organising lectures on issues pertaining to the Greek economy for students of Greek and foreign universities.
Furthermore, the Museum of the Bank of Greece, given its educational role, offers visits tailored to the needs of the vast majority of its visitors (upper secondary school and university students) and hosts educational events focused on specific economic topics. The aim of the permanent exhibition of the Museum is to inform the public about the economic and monetary history of modern Greece and to familiarise it with key economic concepts. The temporary exhibitions and museum educational programmes that accompany them aspire to raise visitors’ awareness and inform them about topics such as climate change, or to familiarise them with technological advances, such as modern payment methods.
Related information:
The book is available in all bookstores and the Bank of Greece will donate proceeds from its sales to charity.
Related link:
The book is posted on the Bank of Greece website and is available here (in Greek).
Photos from the event:
Photo 1: “The abecedary of economy for children up to 12 years old”
Photo 2: Left to right: Deputy Governor of the Bank of Greece Christina Papaconstantinou and the author of the book, Professor of Finance at the University of Piraeus, Nikolaos D. Philippas.
Photo 3: Left to right: Deputy Governor of the Bank of Greece Christina Papaconstantinou and the author of the book, Professor of Finance at the University of Piraeus, Nikolaos D. Philippas with 6th-grade students of the “Ellinogermaniki Agogi” primary school.