FWD Group and Junior Achievement expand award-winning financial literacy programme in Vietnam

FWD Group Holdings Limited ("FWD Group" or "FWD") announced the expansion of its award-winning financial literacy programme, JA SparktheDream, in Vietnam.

Developed in partnership with Junior Achievement (JA), the JA SparktheDream programme integrates financial, social and life skills education for students to help boost financial literacy. This extension aims to ensure that significant adults in students' lives, such as parents and teachers, are also equipped with the financial literacy concepts and skills to support students in their development.

Binayak Dutta, Managing Director, FWD Group, said "We're delighted to extend our partnership with JA in Vietnam. Caring for our communities, increasing financial literacy and educating the next generation for a brighter future is a responsibility we take very seriously at FWD.

"Through JA SparktheDream and its specially designed cartoon characters – Master Earn, Smart Spender and Super Save – we've made financial education relatable and fun for students. The next logical step is to extend financial education to the key role models in students' lives, like parents and teachers, which will widen and deepen the community benefit more broadly," added Binayak Dutta.

Maziar Sabet, President and CEO of JA Asia Pacific, said "The transformative power of education uplifts individuals and communities. The new parent and teacher training programme being developed in Vietnam embodies this principle by equipping those who shape young minds with the tools to foster financial literacy. Through the JA SparktheDream programme, we aim to build a generation of financially empowered children, capable of making informed decisions that benefit not only themselves but also the broader society. Junior Achievement Asia Pacific is honoured to work with a community-centred partner such as FWD in realising our vision to create a world in which young people have the skillset and mindset to build thriving communities."

The JA SparktheDream programme was successfully piloted in Hong Kong in 2022. It brings volunteers and students together in local schools to learn about managing budgets, making sound financial choices and solving their communities' needs in a creative way. Fun games and interactive quizzes leverage in-class and digital platforms. Overall, JA SparktheDream aims to benefit around 25,000 students across eight FWD markets in Asia by the end of 2024.

The programme was recognised with a Silver Award in the 2023 Investor and Financial Education Awards from the Investor and Financial Education Council, a subsidiary of the Securities and Futures Commission, dedicated to improving investor and financial education in Hong Kong.

In its first year in Vietnam in 2023, the programme reached close to 1,700 students aged 10-12 years old and included around 30 FWD volunteers. It also generated almost 200 student-led community improvement ideas which were submitted to the JA SparktheDream Social Challenge 2023 Asia Pacific competition, where a team from the Lac Hong Bilingual School in Vietnam was awarded second place.