Manila, Philippines ― More than 500 attendees from Gubat Elementary School in Albay, Guisad Valley National High School in Baguio, Pembo Elementary School in Makati, and Bambang Elementary School, Buting Elementary School and Francisco Legaspi Memorial School in Pasig participated in Manulife’s recent Peso Smart x RecoveREADS financial literacy webinars, in partnership with the Corazon Sanchez Atayde Memorial Foundation (CSAMF). 

Through the webinars, employees from Manulife Philippines and Manulife China Bank Life Assurance Corporation (MCBL) taught lessons covering basic financial concepts such as saving, budgeting, and investing. 

Manulife’s award-winning financial literacy program Peso Smart continues to support the Department of Education’s initiatives to expand and improve its financial literacy curriculum for K-12 programs to enrich the capability of learners, teachers, and personnel.

“Peso Smart was created to teach young students how to make responsible financial decisions. However, in the course of running the program, we also saw an opportunity to extend it to include teachers, school principals, and parents, who play an integral role in helping advance financial literacy. By empowering communities to embrace the importance of managing personal finances, we can guide more Filipinos on how to be smarter with their money and financially secure their future,” said Melissa Henson, Chief Marketing Officer, Manulife Philippines.

Margaux Romero Atayde, CSAMF Executive Director, added: “Partnering with Manulife Philippines has given us a better understanding of the country’s current state of financial literacy. We saw how the program has helped the families of the children and the teachers from the schools become smarter with their finances, especially during the pandemic. We are happy to continuously work with Manulife in expanding our program so we can help change young Filipinos’ lives through Peso Smart x RecoveREADS.” 

Peso Smart started in 2017 as a series of face-to-face classes dedicated to teaching the importance of saving and investing to students in public elementary schools. During the pandemic, it was redesigned to address the demands of remote learning and expanded to more schools nationwide. The program has also been extended to university students to teach the importance of insurance, investments, and financial planning. More than 400 students have graduated from the Peso Smart program since its inception.

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