—The program instructs millions of people, across multiple platforms, on the proper use of financial services—
—Financial education is essential for encouraging well-informed decisions together with financial inclusion—
MEXICO CITY, Sept. 06, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Banco Azteca, S.A., a banking and financial services institution committed to the development of financial products and services that generate progress and well-being in the communities in which it operates, and a subsidiary of Grupo Elektra (BMV:ELEKTRA*) (Latibex:XEKT), announced today that the Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI), an institution dedicated to generate knowledge and to disseminate best practices to promote financial inclusion, concluded that the Aprende y Crece (Learn and Grow) program of Banco Azteca represents an innovative contribution to financial education.
In two of its recent publications —“A Change in Behavior” and “Financial Capability Building Practices in Mexico”— the CFI highlights the activities of Aprende y Crece, and indicates that through its portal, television series, printed material, point-of-sale screens, mass events, interviews, and theatrical plays, among many other forums, it educates consumers about the proper use of financial products and payment systems, in a fun way. "Making it fun" (Hacerlo divertido) is one of the seven principles that the CFI sets to improve the effectiveness of financial education programs.
In 2013, Banco Azteca started Aprende y Crece to encourage informed financial decision-making and promote an entrepreneurial culture with better success rates for establishing businesses. The program provides financial education to target audiences, such as entrepreneurs, small business owners, youth and women, in clear and simple language. The portal www.aprendeycrece.mx is easily accessible and has intuitive navigation, even for the elderly and people with disabilities, for which Banco Azteca is also a pioneer in digital inclusion, and the dissemination of the program in other media facilitates a broader reach of the initiative.
Aprende y Crece has reached to date more than 13 million people in Mexico, the United States, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Panama and Peru, contributing decisively to boost living standards—especially for communities that have traditionally been excluded from the traditional financial system.
The initiative frequently teams up with public and private institutions, and financial and academic authorities, through strategic alliances that strengthen reach and content.
Banco Azteca is a firm believer that financial inclusion should be accompanied by financial education. The challenge of financial inclusion goes beyond ensuring that the greatest number of people have access to financial services; of equal importance is to achieve the understanding of its use through adequate education that seeks to generate a change of positive behaviour.
About Banco Azteca
It is a financial institution that offers consumer, personal, group and pawn loans, credit cards and deposit and investment options. In addition to Mexico, it also operates in Panama, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Peru. In its 15 years of operations in Mexico, Banco Azteca has been an institution committed to the development of financial products and services that generate progress and well-being for low-income families. With 1,735 branches, Banco Azteca has the second-largest banking network in Mexico.
About Center for Financial Inclusion
The Center for Financial Inclusion at Accion (CFI) is an action-oriented institution that engages and promotes changes in the financial sector to serve, protect and empower financial service users in the best way. It collaborates with stakeholders to achieve a comprehensive vision for financial inclusion. It is dedicated to enabling 3 billion people who are left out of – or poorly served by – the financial sector to improve their lives.