Citi Volunteers Teach Kids Finance Skills with INJAZ UAE

On Global Community Day, Citi will work with nonprofit organizations to strengthen communities around the world through volunteerism. This year, Citi Volunteers worked with Citi Foundation partner INJAZ UAE (Junior Achievement Worldwide) to teach kids the value of personal finance.

1. What is the need that you see your organization filling?

Financial Literacy education in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is an area that's increasingly gaining momentum, yet educators do not have the programs or infrastructure to provide their students with best practices, activities in this area, nor do they have regular access to mentors that can help in their efforts. Students that don't have access to financial literacy education are therefore lacking in such skills, as most available programs address higher age groups, which is too late for developing the right mindset from an early age.

INJAZ works with educators to address these issues and support educational development in the UAE. The implementation of financial literacy programs at a young age has a positive social and economic impact, because the earlier that youth learn financial skills, the more likely they'll make better economic decisions in the future.

2. What opportunity does your organization give volunteers?

INJAZ UAE, as any Junior Achievement branch around the world, connects volunteer mentors with youth to share their knowledge with those who need guidance the most, teaching critical learning skills in entrepreneurship, work-readiness and financial literacy skills. This helps bridge the gap between education and the professional world in a practical way. By supporting youth development such skills, will give them first-hand training at a young age, which is a true investment in the development of their future as employees, customers, and business leaders.

Corporate volunteers have the opportunity to give back to the communities in which they live in by sharing their knowledge and experience with youth, while also gaining skills themselves as they engage with their mentees.

3. How does your organization have a positive impact on program participants and the greater community?

INJAZ UAE helps improve student's career prospects and competitiveness as a result of improved knowledge and skills after they experience JA programs.

INJAZ UAE gives local and multi-national companies the opportunity to be directly involved in organized CSR activities at a corporate and individual level so companies see the impact they're creating right away. Such programs also support government Emiratisation and the opens the minds of youth to the world of opportunities available in the private sector.

This successful model, brings companies closer to communities they operate in, giving them an opportunity to take an active role in raising students' knowledge and skills, access to mentors and receptiveness to volunteer work.

What are the long-term goals of your organization?

On each given day, INJAZ UAE delivers volunteer led programs that empower young people to own their economic success. The organization's guiding principles worldwide help achieve its overall purpose which is to inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy.

Those guiding principles help guide us towards long-term goals, such as delivering highly enjoyable and practical activity based learning programs to improve young people's understanding of the economy and of the necessary skills they will need to succeed in their lives.

In the UAE, we currenly reach 8000 a year engaging a little over 1300 corporate mentors. We aspire to grow that number each year and increase the impact of our programs.

4. How is your organization getting involved with Citi's Global Community Day this year?

We are very happy to be part of the MENA (Middle East North Africa) for Children Initiative, which delivers programs to support the development of children, in partnership with Citi. In the UAE, Citi volunteers took part in the Personal Economic Program that offers 8 Grade students practical introduction to personal finance. In Morocco, the initiative is centered on youth in rural areas, in which Citi volunteers will be mentoring a group of students in the Brouj area.