NEW PUBLIC CONSULTATION REPORT PLACES YOUTH AT CENTRE OF FINANCIAL
RESPONSIBILITY SOLUTION

    
           Early behaviour and skill development are the greatest
              contributors to lifelong financial responsibility
    

TORONTO, Sept. 23 /CNW/ - As the largest national provider of youth financial literacy programs, Junior Achievement of Canada (JA Canada(TM)) says that the public consultation report by the Task Force on Financial Literacy clearly shows Canadians' desire for knowledge, tools and collaboration on financial literacy.

"We welcome the release of today's report and are pleased to see that Canadian's views on the importance of building youth's knowledge and understanding of finances are closely aligned with our own," said Ross Maund, President and CEO, JA Canada. "Junior Achievement plays an important role in building money management skills by providing financial literacy mentorship experiences to youth across Canada."

JA Canada programs, including Economics for Success and Dollars with Sense, are making a positive impact on today's youth by putting financial literacy concepts into practice, in a way that connects basic economics to life events and personal aspirations. Last year alone, more than 230,000 Canadian students experienced a JA Canada(TM) program and received over 1.4 million instructional hours from 13,029 committed business mentors. Since 1955, 3,776,570 students have participated in JA Canada programs.

"For the last 55 years, JA Canada has inspired, prepared and empowered youth by offering knowledge about work readiness, financial literacy and entrepreneurship," said Maund. "One of our greatest strengths is relationships with all sectors of the business community. Together, we create age-appropriate tools and resources for young people and young families that have application to real life events and decisions. Experience is the best teacher and these young people get to practice money management skills at home, in everyday situations."

As a key organization contributing and helping to sustain financial literacy, JA Canada looks forward to the release of final report, which will provide advice and recommendations to the Minister of Finance on a national strategy on financial literacy.

About JA Canada(TM) (Junior Achievement of Canada)

For over 50 years, Junior Achievement learning experiences have helped young Canadians discover financial literacy, entrepreneurial and work readiness skills so they can achieve their highest potential as citizens of our global community. Across Canada, Junior Achievement reaches over 230,000 students annually with 13,000 dedicated business mentors in over 400 communities delivering a suite of eight national programs. Since 1955, almost 3.8 million Canadian youth have participated in our business learning experiences free-of-charge. For more information please visit www.jacan.org.

For further information: or to arrange an interview with Mr. Ross Maund, please contact: Kristina Fixter, Director of Communications, Tel: [phone], ext. 229, E: [email protected]