Management of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), on Wednesday, said it has gone a step further to make investment education children and youth-friendly, with the publication of the maiden edition of StockTown, a comic book.
The publication, which the NSE said, is available in both print and digital formats, just as readers can download the book via http://www.nse-stocktown.com, is aimed at promoting financial literacy.
StockTown, the statement explained, “makes use of illustrated characters story to educate readers of all ages about the importance of savings and investment.
“In its first issue, readers are introduced to Mora Johnson and her middle-class family who are experiencing financial hardship that pushes Mora to want to learn more about investment and financial independence,” the statement added.
According to Oscar Onyema, Chief Executive Officer of the NSE, “StockTown is the product of a passionate idea long held by the Exchange to empower individuals across all levels to make good financial decisions and better their lives now and in the future.
“In a drastically evolving financial landscape, The Exchange continues to find new ways to communicate the ideas of saving and investment using products available on its platform. We hope this comic, which demonstrates the idea of buying and selling securities in simple terms, can crowd-in the financially excluded, millennials and all lovers of comics,” he stressed further.
The launch of StockTown, the statement continued, builds on the Exchange’s strong commitment to promoting financial literacy in Nigeria, just as it implements initiatives yearly, targeted at children and youths, aimed at building a financially savvy generation.
In 2019, the NSE reached over 60,000 youths during its weeklong commemoration of the Global Money Week, an annual programme, by hosting a workshop for youths at its offices and conducting outreaches in cities where it operates.
Regularly also, the Exchange hosts secondary schools, undergraduates and young upwardly mobile professionals to X-Tours, a financial literacy workshop that culminates in a tour of the trading floor and meeting with Stockbrokers.
Through these channels, the NSE makes significant contributions to reducing the level of financial exclusion in Nigeria to 20% in line with its mandate as a member of the National Finance Inclusion Steering Committee led by the Central Bank of Nigeria. The NSE is also a member of the Financial Literacy Technical Committee of the Securities and Exchange Commission.