At the end of October – when the World Savings Day is celebrated in Germany – this is a customary picture in many savings bank branches. At schools, children are taught about the benefits of good financial planning – naturally in terms adapted to their age – and above all about how important it is to prepare for the future with savings.
For the first time now the World Savings Day has been held in Georgia and Azerbaijan too. The Savings Bank Foundation for International Cooperation supported the Central Banks in both countries in organising and carrying out the World Savings Day. As in Germany, the focus is on children and adolescents. In both countries a common framework was created for diverse activities of the participating banks. These ranged from organising painting competitions and theatre presentations for children right through to a football tournament for girls. The participating institutions were able to call on a budget planner service that was developed specially for poorer population groups. A “Finance Test” was created to arouse interest in financial issues. Information events were held in many schools.
The nation-wide campaign was accompanied by specially developed mascots – in Azerbaijan an extremely active squirrel shows how to save properly. In Georgia the savings ant is the hero of a small film. Fulfilling wishes by saving – naturally with a bank. The savings ant was “born” already in 2010 when the World Savings Day was introduced in the Congo, and was taken up by the Georgians in a form adapted to their country.
Film produced by the Georgian Central Bank on the occasion of World Savings Day
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Contact partners:
Dr. Ilonka Rühle / Christina Heuft
Sparkassenstiftung für internationale Kooperation
Simrockstraße 4
53113 Bonn / Germany
Tel.: +49 228 9703-624 / -618
Fax: +49 228 9703-630 / -613