The Edufinet Project, promoted by Unicaja Banco and Fundación Unicaja, has carried out, together with the University of Malaga (UMA), a course on financial education aimed at the elderly, covering different economic and financial topics from a practical point of view.
The course, developed in five sessions at the University of Malaga and at Unicaja Financial Education Centre, has covered essential topics related to family budget, economic indicators and how to understand economic information, investment funds, pension plans and the taxation of financial products.
With this initiative, developed in collaboration with the UMA, the students have learnt about different features of the family budget, such as the economic circuit, the stages of the life cycle, the main sources of income and expenses, the different between income and wealth and budget restrictions.
They have also learnt to understand the economic information through the main economic indicators and labor market indicators, and they have studied concepts such as the GDP, inflation, savings or interest and exchange rates.
With regard to investment funds, attention has been paid to the existing modalities and to the return and risk that they involve. The students have also analyzed the current situation of the pension system in Spain, its modalities, contributions and benefits.
Finally the taxation of financial products in the personal income statement has been explained: deposits, fixed and variable income, investment funds, pension plans and insurance.
The Edufinet Projects develops since 2018 the Lectures on Financial Education for Adults, which have allowed the project to extend its target audience, composed so far mainly by Secondary Education, Baccalaureate and Vocational Training students.
Edufinet Project, a pioneering initiative
The Edufinet Project has been working for nearly 15 years to bring financial education closer to society. Unicaja is thus one of the first financial institutions in Spain to launch an initiative of this kind. For this purpose, the project currently collaborates with more than ten business organizations and institutions, as well as with 16 universities.
Edufinet was launched, through an Internet portal for the general public, at the end of 2007, although its development began in 2005, within Unicaja. Since it was launched, more than 152,000 people have participated directly in workshops or seminars, of which more than 108,000 were young people. The website www.edufinet.com has received 8.5 million visits, with access and consults from 180 countries.
This Internet portal on financial education includes systematic and practical information, in a question-answer format and where no previous knowledge is required. Later, two additional portals were created with specific contents: one for business owners and entrepreneurs (Edufiemp), and one for financial education for young people (Edufinext).
Edufinet organizes the Conferences on Financial Education for Young People and the Financial Olympics, as well as seminars and lectures at universities, summer courses or participation in international projects. It also fosters several publications, such as the ‘Financial Guide’ or the ‘Financial Guide for business owners and entrepreneurs’.
