Sharing: Financial Literacy Programme

           As I wrote in my Easter letter http://anastasialindawatimm.blogspot.hk/2013/04/sharing-easter-letter-2013.html, I am volunteering at a Financial Literacy Programme organized by The Women’s Foundation for Pathfinders and Support Service Centre for Ethnic Minorities.  

The key objective of the Programme is: to empower marginalised women in poverty; to improve their level of financial literacy and ultimately achieve greater economic self-reliance and a better quality of life for themselves and their families; and to assist marginalised women with potential in capacity building.     

            Three clients (migrant mothers) and there volunteers, including myself, of Pathfinders attended the ambassador training once a week starting in January 2013.  The trainers from The Christian Action Training Centre trained all of us for 13 weeks and will accompany us during community trainings.  There was a survey programme before and after the training, which was conducted by a surveyor from Chinese University of Hong Kong. 

            The curriculum for Ambassador training is: Teaching Skills, Principles and Skills in Conducting Training Activities, Training Demonstration, Presentation by Ambassadors, and Successful Life Stories along with the curriculum for Community training: What a Beautiful Life, Essentials of Personal Finance, Goal Setting, Income and Expenditure Plan, Introduction on Investment, Credit Card Loan, Introduction to Small Business, Wise Management of Remittance to Home, Self-Assertiveness.  

            The ambassadors prepared a budgeted lunch and planned a One Year Smart Housewife’s Saving Plan at the end of the programme as a Smart Saver Activity.

            The Community training, once a week, was started in May 2013 with eight participants (seven Indonesian mothers and one Filipina mother).   Two ambassadors and two leaders, including myself, takes a turn to deliver the content of the training one hour per week while the rest of the group will help out in whatever is needed.  The trainer prepared all the material for community training including all the props so it makes it easier for the ambassadors and leaders.  As not all of the Indonesians can communicate in English, I translate the trainer’s guide and participant’s manual besides do the simultaneous translation during the Community training.  I am also responsible for distributing the transport allowance for all the participants both during Ambassador and Community training sessions.

            All the mothers usually will attend the programme with their children so it’s a challenge to attend and deliver the programme while the children are around.  The presence of volunteers such as from Hands On http://handsonhongkong.org/ to take care of the children, which is very helpful even though it’s not on a regular basis during the Ambassador Training but fortunately there are regular volunteers during the Community Training as there are more children.           

           This is good training, not only for the clients of Pathfinders, but also for me as I am also learning a lot both about the finance and how to conduct the training.  Both the Program Manager of the Women’s Foundation and the Senior Project Manager of Pathfinders have expressed their gratitude for my help.  

           

Hong Kong, May 30, 2013

           

Sr. Anastasia B. Lindawati, M.M.

Let’s do simple things with simple love to make God’s love visible

P.S. This article was prepared our China region newsletter no. 18 June 2013