Romania enacts Financial Literacy Day to increase financial education

Romania will have a Financial Literacy Day, which will be celebrated on April 11, after President Iohannis enacted a law in this regard.

This law comes to address the need for more financial education in Romania, which is last in the European Union and among the last in the world in terms of financial literacy, according to data compiled by the Romanian Banks’ Association (ARB).

A study published earlier this year by the Romanian Academy’s Institute for World Economy concludes that 92% of the Romanian population is financially illiterate. Moreover, 39% of the participants in this survey declared that they were not interested in receiving financial information.

Under the Financial Literacy Day, public and private institutions in Romania will organize events to increase the public’s awareness on personal finance issues. In recent years, several public institutions and local banks have launched financial literacy initiatives, aiming to educate children as well as adults on how to manage their money.

“The Romanian Parliament, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education, the National Bank of Romania, the Financial Supervision Authority, and the Financial Studies Institute, together with other authorities belonging to the central and local public administration may organize public events, symposiums, seminars, or other types of public events on the subject of financial education, dedicated to this day,” states the law promulgated by President Iohannis, according to Mediafax.

The law in this regard was initiated by 50 senators and deputies and was passed by the Chamber of Deputies on March 29, with 217 votes “in favor”, 15 “against” and 57 “abstaining”.

During the debates, George-Cristian Tuță, one of the initiators, stated that establishing the Financial Education/Literacy Day was essential. Furthermore, he emphasizes that April 11 should be the beginning of a more consistent policy for financial education for all Romanian citizens, but mainly for those who do not understand how much such education is needed.

“Financial education is not about teaching Romanian citizens to become experts in the stock market and mutual funds overnight,” he added.

by Iulia Asproiu, contributor