Kuala Lumpur, 23 December 2020 – The Fun(d) for Life Portal, a website aimed at shaping a financially-smart generation is now accessible to all Malaysian students, parents and teachers in dual-language; Bahasa Melayu and English. Filled with interactive games, videos, infographics and activity tips for the whole family to do from the comfort of their homes, the financial literacy website comes at a timely moment during which Malaysian families face the realities of the economic impact brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In line with Malaysia’s National Strategy for Financial Literacy 2019-2023, it aspires to elevate the levels of financial literacy, promote responsible financial behaviour and healthy attitudes towards financial management. Supported by FWD Takaful, the Portal is developed by Arus Academy, a social enterprise aimed at empowering today’s problem solvers through engaging and exciting experiential learning adventures.
“Financial management is something all of us adults can agree is an essential life skill. However, getting the young generation to see its importance from such a young age requires us to explore innovative ways to make it exciting and engaging for them. Combine this with the ripple effects of the pandemic where some families are facing financial difficulties and are mostly staying at home, we believe it’s even more important to deliver this financial content digitally now, making it accessible to all Malaysians,” said Alina Amir, the co-founder of Arus Academy.
Guided by the OECD/INFE’s Core Competencies Framework on Financial Literacy for Youth, the Fun(d) for Life Portal covers a wide range of financial topics relevant to 7-18 year olds including savings, budgeting, foreign currency, long-term planning, online scams and frauds. Receiving the support of FWD Takaful as a Takaful provider means that the financial content provided on the Portal also encapsulates a key component of financial management, which is risk management through Takaful protection.
This is imperative as shown by Malaysians’ lack of readiness for unexpected life events, with 52% of Malaysians having difficulty to raise RM1,000 as emergency funds or only 24% of Malaysians are able to sustain living expenses for at least 3 months or more if they lose their main source of income, according to a Credit Counselling and Debt Management Agency (AKPK) survey in 2019.
Alina added, “We cover these financial topics in engaging ways appropriate for our youths, using quizzes offering cash prizes, specially-curated comics where we work with local illustrators as well as mini-video series on money hosted by a 10-year-old to make it relatable.”
In addition to content for 7-18 year old students, the Fun(d) for Life Portal also includes dedicated sections for parents, teachers and the community. These sections provide age-based activity tips and lesson plans to complement the Portal’s objective of working with various parties to shape a financially-smart generation.
“Realising that many Malaysian teachers are currently teaching remotely, we’ve created lesson plans which are in line with the Ministry of Education’s Implementation Guidelines for Financial Education. This way, our lesson plans can be conducted by the teachers as part of their existing curriculum,” explained Alina further.
The Fun(d) for Life Portal is one of FWD Takaful’s initiatives to introduce students to financial management and to the concept of takaful protection in unexpected life circumstances. Since 2019, it has been running ‘Fun(d) for Life Camps’ annually, an interactive and hands-on financial literacy program for selected schools across Malaysia.
To access the financial literacy content created for students, teachers and parents on the Fun(d) for Life Portal, please visit www.fundfor.life.
