Australia's business, community, government and education leaders joined forces in Canberra today to develop strategies for improving the financial skills of all Australians.
Minister for Revenue and Assistant Treasurer, Mal Brough, and respected money commentator, Paul Clitheroe, chaired the Financial Literacy Forum to step up the campaign to help Australians better understand their money.
"Financial literacy is an Australian Government initiative, with a $41 million investment over five years. The Government has already established the Financial Literacy Foundation which is chaired by Paul Clitheroe and includes 10 high-profile Australians on its Advisory Board. Our goal is to help Australians improve their financial knowledge and make better, more informed choices with their money," Mal Brough said today.
"Today's Forum was a major step forward in establishing working relationships across industry, community, education and government sectors.
"The Financial Literacy Foundation will utilise the networks created today to develop a national framework to help Australians better understand the choices they can make in using and managing their money.
"Budget planning, regular saving, managing debt, and investing wisely are just some of the skills that Australians need. We don't want Australians, particularly young people, to make mistakes and get into debt traps. We want to help them learn simple, but valuable lessons about how money works and how to make it work better for them."
Financial Literacy Foundation Chairman, Paul Clitheroe, said that even a few financial basics can make a big difference to many Australians.
"Are Australians making their money work for them? Let's say you just received a decent tax return. Do you spend it all on everyday items or do you develop a plan to make your money work for you?" said Mr Clitheroe.
"We want to see Australians being smarter with their money by paying off their mortgage sooner, starting or building on a savings plan, managing their debt better or following other simple strategies that really can make a difference," he said.