Archived - Harper Government Encourages Financial Literacy for Young Canadians as Key to a Strong Economic Future for Canada
August 29, 2014 – Toronto, Ontario – Department of Finance
Minister of State (Finance) Kevin Sorenson today participated in the Junior Economic Club of Canada’s second annual Bay Street Boot Camp to highlight the importance of financial literacy for students. Minister Sorenson was joined by Financial Literacy Leader Jane Rooney as part of an expert panel of judges to which students pitched a business plan.
The primary mandate of the Junior Economic Club of Canada is to educate and inspire Canadian youth to become financially literate. The Club is hosting a five-day Boot Camp for students aged 15 to 17 designed to explore how financial literacy contributes to both financial and personal success.
- Economic Action Plan 2009 established a Task Force on Financial Literacy.
- In February 2011, the Task Force released its final report, which included 30 recommendations to help various levels of government and other stakeholders strengthen the financial literacy of Canadians.
- In April 2014, the Government appointed Canada’s first Financial Literacy Leader, Jane Rooney, and is currently developing a National Strategy for Financial Literacy, which will focus, in part, on children and youth.
- In addition to improving financial literacy across Canada, the Harper Government has a “Consumers First” agenda. As a key part of this agenda, the Harper Government took efforts to alleviate the costs of banking services for Canadians. In May 2014, it secured voluntary commitments from eight of the largest banks to make low-cost or no-cost accounts available to a wider range of eligible customers, including youths and students.
Meagan Murdoch
Communications
Office of the Minister of State (Finance)
613-996-7861
Stéphanie Rubec
Media Relations
Department of Finance
613-996-8080
