For the eighth year running, the Malta Bankers’ Association (MBA) organised a series of events and activities in conjunction with European Money Week (EMW) and Global Money Week, which this year was held between 21 and 25 March 2022. Besides the events held during EMW 2022, on the 29 March a national competition was held for the second year running amongst eligible students, aimed at selecting participants representing Malta for the European Banking Federation (EBF)’s European Money Quiz, which will be held online on the 10 May.
EMW is characterised by a series of financial education events organised by national banking associations across Europe, under the coordination of the EBF of which the MBA is a member.
The programme of events was planned by the MBA in conjunction with staff from the Home Economics Seminar Centre (HESC) led by Ms Lorraine Dimech Magrin, within the Department for Curriculum, Lifelong Learning & Employability, Ministry for Education and in collaboration with the Malta Police, GEMMA, Junior Achievement Young Enterprise Malta Foundation (JAYE), the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA), Central Bank of Malta (CBM), Malta Stock Exchange Institute (MSEI) and Deborah Schembri, an insurance expert.
EMW 2022’s week-long programme was officially inaugurated on the 21 March with a virtual address from the Minister for Education, Dr Clifton Grima. The day’s proceedings continued with the announcement of the winning students who competed in the ‘Financial Literacy Challenge’ programme for Primary school students Year 4 to 6 and Secondary school students Year 7 to 11 both on an individual and group basis. Students from several participating primary schools were require to plan and implement an activity with the theme Young Chef Challenge which aimed to promote awareness related to financial capabilities through the preparation of a healthy low-cost food item with emphasis on: seasonality, sustainability, and local produce. Vouchers redeemable for IT equipment were awarded by the MBA to the first and second-placed students respectively, from both primary and secondary schools.
Another long-held activity of EMW was a ‘train-the-trainer’ event namely, a professional development training session for educators with the theme “Financial Literacy, a Lifelong Experience,” was held on the 22 March. Speakers from the Cyber Crime Unit of the Police, the MFSA, the MSEI, GEMMA, JAYE, developed themes connected with the wider definition and concept of financial literacy as explained above.
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Winning Primary School students (Individual Challenge)
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| 1st Prize: Sven Zerafa | School: Laura Vicuna School, Għasri, Gozo |
| 2nd Prize: Zachary Briffa | School: St. Ignatius College, Siġġiewi Primary |
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Winning Secondary School students (Individual Challenge)
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| 1st Prize: Jayme Hili | School: St. Margaret College, Verdala |
| 2nd Prize: Anthony Michael Gafa | School: St. Margaret College, Cospicua |
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Winning Primary School (Group Challenge)
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| 1st Prize: St. Francis School, Victoria Gozo | 2nd Prize: St. Joseph Mater Boni Consillii, Paola |
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Winning Secondary School (Group Challenge)
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| 1st Prize: St. Ignatius College, Handaq | – |
| Consolation prizes were also awarded to: 1 school and 2 students | |
EMW continued with a further event held by JAYE Malta Foundation through the interactive programme “Europe My Business”, which explored the relationship between the natural, human and capital resources found in different countries.
During the week the newly launched online programme Be Money Smart was held for Year 6 pupils in state and non-state schools. It was facilitated by support teachers within the HESC in collaboration with personnel from the CBM. This interactive programme aims to develop learners’ financial capabilities by enabling them to differentiate between needs and wants, plan a simple budget, outline the importance of saving money, discuss the main role of banks and their services, identify ways to verify authentic bank notes and discuss ways how to be a critical consumer.
EMW 2021 was concluded on the 26 March with an initiative which was also successfully held in previous editions of the Money Week, namely the “Be Wise – Pay Smart” programme. This event showcased a number of educational videos written, acted and directed by staff from the HESC and commissioned and funded by the MBA for use in schools. The participants comprised Year 10 students aged 14 to 15 years following the Core Curriculum Programme and Year 9, 10 and 11 students aged 13 to 16 years following the PTI Achieve Programme. Teachers from the HESC together with representatives of the MBA’s members, namely BOV and HSBC, acted as facilitators during this event.
For the second year running the national competition, which selected two eligible students to participate at the EBF’s forthcoming European Money Quiz, was a resounding success as over 300 students from state, private and Church schools, participated in this event. The local event was held on the 29 March. The MBA also awarded prizes to the two finalists.
