March 25, 2019
Manila - Manulife Philippines partnered with Manulife Business Processing Services (MBPS) to expand their Peso Smart financial literacy program to two more schools. For its second year, Peso Smart reached a total of sixty elementary students from five schools. Manulife employees contributed a total of 1,200 volunteer hours to the program. Schools that participated include: Kamuning and Bagong Silangan elementary schools in Quezon City, Mandaluyong Addition Hills and Nueve de Febrero elementary schools in Mandaluyong, and Pembo elementary school in Makati.
Peso Smart is a series of financial literacy classes co-developed by Manulife Philippines and Hands on Manila. It is designed to teach public school students the basics of saving, budgeting, and investing. Manulife and MBPS employees served as weekly Peso Smart mentors. For their final project, the students created a financial plan for their family where they applied what they have learned during the school year.
“We’ve gotten positive feedback from the kids, their parents, and even the teachers who were part of this year’s Peso Smart Program. It made the students more aware of how to manage their finances. By teaching them these skills at a young age, they will be able to make well-informed financial decisions that will help them live better lives in the future,” said Ryan Charland, President and CEO, Manulife Philippines.
MBPS Head, Bob Buiaroski added: “We’re happy to be part of the Peso Smart program and to empower students to become financially savvy at a young age. The Manulife team is in full force in helping the students and their families better manage their finances.”
The Peso Smart program is the first financial literacy module that was implemented under volunteer organization Hands On Manila’s (HOM) Galing Mo Kid education program.
“The Peso Smart program created a ripple effect that spread in the students’ communities. The students were able to pass on their learnings to their parents and other elders, many of whom did not learn financial literacy skills when they were younger. Peso Smart is a financial education curriculum that helps the whole community in managing their finances better, and at the same time strengthens the value of service and volunteerism among Manulife’s employees,” said Gianna Montinola, President of HOM.
The second installment of the Peso Smart has been implemented in the school year 2018 – 2019.
About Manulife Philippines
The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company opened its doors for business in the Philippines in 1907. Since then, Manulife’s Philippine Branch and later The Manufacturers Life Insurance Co. (Phils.), Inc. (Manulife Philippines) has grown to become one of the leading life insurance companies in the country. Manulife Philippines is a wholly-owned domestic subsidiary of Manulife Financial Corporation, among the world’s largest life insurance companies by market capitalization. Learn more about Manulife Philippines by visiting the website and follow them on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ManulifePH), Twitter (@ManulifePH), and Instagram (@manulifeph).
About Manulife
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services group that helps people make their decisions easier and lives better. We operate primarily as John Hancock in the United States and Manulife elsewhere. We provide financial advice, insurance, as well as wealth and asset management solutions for individuals, groups and institutions. At the end of 2017, we had about 35,000 employees, 73,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving more than 26 million customers. As of September 30, 2018, we had over $1.1 trillion (US$863 billion) in assets under management and administration, and in the previous 12 months we made $27.6 billion in payments to our customers. Our principal operations are in Asia, Canada and the United States where we have served customers for more than 100 years. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges and under '945' in Hong Kong.
About Manulife Business Processing Services (MBPS)
MBPS is the global shared service center of Manulife which provides administrative, finance, investments, marketing, underwriting, actuarial, and information technology services to Manulife and John Hancock operations in Canada, the United States, and Asia. It was established in the Philippines in April 2006 and operates 24x7 in its main site at the UP North Science and Technology Park in Quezon City, its secondary site in Chengdu, China and its third site in Mactan Newtown, Cebu.
About Hands On Manila
Formally established in August 2001, Hands on Manila (HOM) brings to the Philippines an innovative and alternative model of volunteer service. The flexibility model of volunteer service allows for volunteering to be integrated into daily schedules of busy individuals. Introduced and developed by the Hands on Network (formerly City Cares), the model has been successful in many American cities.
HOM is the first Hands on Network affiliate in the Asia Pacific region. It is committed to empowering individuals to act as citizens and to realize their ability to contribute to the community in meaningful ways. By providing a variety of flexible tangible volunteer opportunities, HOM seeks to enhance citizen capacity to effectively serve the community.
Based on the premise that everyone can serve, HOM’s mission is to mobilize people to address the critical social, educational and environmental needs of the country through volunteer action. HOM believes that VOLUNTEER ACTION is a powerful force for creating change.
Hands on Manila encourages an even greater sense of responsibility, caring and awareness in those who come to know the life-changing power of getting involved. Those in need as well as those volunteering are able to gain a sense of fulfillment and inclusion, and work together to unite and improve our community.