As a major step to promote financial literacy among youngsters in Saudi Arabia, The Capital Market Authority (CMA) is launching this summer "The Smart Investor" program, a nationwide financial awareness program that teaches children the fundamentals of finance, economy, and saving, as potential future investors in the country's economy and capital market.
The purpose of the program is to spread proper financial practices among boys and girls between the ages of 9 and 14, a step which could help lead to an overall healthy financial culture. "The Smart Investor" aims at teaching children the principles of money management, investment, saving mechanisms, and introduces them to the roles and responsibilities of key financial institutions in the country. In addition, it promotes Islamic values and ethics by teaching children the proper attitude towards money.
The program will include interactive lectures in schools, an interactive website and pages on social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. It also includes displays that would be presented at malls, exhibitions, summer camps, as well as festivals and cultural events related to children. CMA has sought the experiences of many countries in the world that had taken pioneering steps in financial literacy for children to launch the program. A team of specialists and professionals in the fields of finance and education have developed the scientific and educational framework for the project under the supervision of CMA.
Studies and surveys conducted by world acclaimed financial institutions have reached the conclusion that financial and investment awareness at an early stage contribute to the avoidance of a crisis, as investors in capital markets become wary of the risks involved in various investments.
CMA began publishing a bi-annual magazine which has the same name of the program, "The Smart Investor", two years ago. The publication targets children in elementary and intermediate levels and teaches them the basics of finance and saving in a fun way suitable to their ages. CMA distributed over 150,000 copies of the magazine to children via more than 100 visits to public and private schools and shopping malls all across Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, copies were distributed freely at airports, train stations, and during public events such as the Riyadh International Book Fair, the International Day for Children, and the Saudi Women's Development Forum. The magazine can be viewed and downloaded from CMA's official website: www.cma.org.sa
The new program is a continuation of CMA's awareness efforts to educate current and future investors about the rules and regulations of the capital market and to provide a secure environment for investment in the capital market. In the past two years, CMA conducted road shows in 2008-2009 and 2010 which covered 18 major cities and towns in Saudi Arabia for 3 months every year. Over 500,000 copies of CMA's 14 awareness booklets, smart investor magazines, brochures, leaflets, as well as copies of its rules and regulations were distributed to the public. As many as 268,000 male and female citizens and residents visited CMA's stands in malls and exhibitions in 2010 alone. Furthermore, CMA constructed three social network accounts on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to interact with the public and reinforce transparency. It also held this year briefing sessions for representatives of joint listed companies in the Saudi stock market in three major Saudi cities to answer questions related to mandatory information required by CMA for joint listed companies to fill out in the Board of Directors Report submitted in their annual reports.
