Banco de Portugal (BP) and the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI), supported by Banco Central do Brasil (BCB), concluded their first training together from 19-23 February, 2018 in Lisbon, Portugal.

“The high level of interest among the trainees, demonstrates their commitment in ensuring the application and multiplication of the knowledge in their jurisdictions,” said Deputy Governor of BCB, Dr. Isaac Sidney Ferreira in his closing remarks. He thanked the trainers for their dedication and conveyed his appreciation to the Board of Directors of Banco Central do Brasil (BCB) for prioritizing this event.

The five-day training, Programme Training Personal Financial Management Trainers (PTPFMT), is the first initiative held under the Protocol of Technical Cooperation in the field of Financial Inclusion and Education with the Central Banks of Portuguese-speaking countries (Bancos Centrais de Países de Língua Portuguesa-BCPLP).

The training was attended by participants from Angola, Mozambique and Portugal, countries that are uniquely positioned to benefit from financial management education.

“Programs such as this and the international exchange we had this week, provide concrete opportunities for the design of public financial education policies that can improve the standard of living of the population,” emphasized Deputy Governor of BCB, Dr. Isaac Sidney Ferreira adding that there is already an interesting alignment between Banco Central do Brasil and Banco de Portugal “which enhances the possibilities for integration and collaboration between other Portuguese-speaking countries.”

Furthermore, the Director of the Behavioral Supervision Department of BP, Lúcia Leitão, stressed that “financial education will always be a necessity” requiring “a true commitment from all counterparts.”

A focus area for AFI, financial education provides concrete opportunities for designing of public financial education policies that can improve the standards of living of individuals. The macroeconomic results of financial education at the national level may not be immediate but will be perceived by indicators of social responsibility over the longer term.

In the coming months, the technical teams of the BCB, BP and AFI will provide technical support to the representatives that attended the course, continuing the important exchange of experiences that took place during the five-day training last week.