KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 12 — Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) is committed to empowering the community with financial literacy skills through the organisation of various financial and investment literacy-based programmes.
As an investment institution mandated to make a positive impact on the economy and community well-being, PNB believes that it is its duty to equip people with the knowledge and necessary skills to save, invest, and make wise financial decisions.
Therefore, PNB, through its wholly owned unit trust management company Amanah Saham Nasional Bhd (ASNB), has implemented various financial literacy initiatives and activities in order to fulfil all four of its corporate social responsibility pillars, namely education funding, financial literacy, community upliftment, and knowledge sharing.
PNB said in a statement that all the initiatives and activities were implemented to support the government’s efforts to bolster economic growth, in addition to bringing positive changes to the needy.
“PNB also has the responsibility of generating stable and long-term returns for its unit holders. This is in line with PNB’s commitment to increase financial literacy and assist Malaysians in making better financial decisions in light of their future requirements,” the statement said.
PNB is also committed to fostering a culture of sustainability by creating a platform for knowledge sharing through the organisation of several major financial literacy programmes such as Minggu Saham Amanah Malaysia (MSAM) and the establishment of the PNB Smart Investment Club in more than 155 secondary schools nationwide.
Other programmes, such as Sembang-Sembang ASNB, PNB Investment Quiz and Ramah Mesra ASNB, that are open to the public are also held.
PNB also provides assistance and support to enhance the quality of life and well-being of the community through several initiatives and donations, with a total of RM34 million spent in the form of educational scholarship programmes involving 1,299 students nationwide last year.
Among the programmes implemented are the PNB Global Scholarship Award and the Yayasan Tun Ismail Premier Scholarship Award, which has been regarded as one of Malaysia’s most prestigious scholarships for over two decades, with students sponsored to pursue tertiary education at top universities in the United Kingdom and the United States.
Other educational sponsorship and assistance programmes include the PNB Chartered Accountant Initiative (PCA), the PNB-Kolej Ilmu Scholarship Programme, and the Bantuan Untuk Pendidikan (BUDI) initiative.
The PCA scholarship had 230 active students and 1,025 graduates by the end of 2022, while the PNB-Kolej Ilmu Scholarship Programme had benefited 1,131 students as of March 31.
On MSAM 2023, which was recently held in Penang, PNB said that the programme, which carries the theme ‘Bijak Melabur, Santai Berhibur’ focused on three aspects of financial management: budgeting rules, the power of compounding, and goal-based investment.
“The successful implementation of MSAM was realised with the commitment of MSAM’s corporate partners, including S P Setia, Maybank, Sime Darby Plantation and UMW Holdings,” read the statement.
According to PNB, various programmes, such as Program Bersama PNB, Sembang-Sembang ASNB, PNB Investment Quiz, and PNB Smart Investment Club, were held throughout the event to educate the public about prudent investment and financial planning.
MSAM is an education-based programme and PNB’s largest financial literacy carnival, which has been held since 2000 to achieve PNB’s objective of raising awareness among Malaysians about the importance of investment and financial knowledge.
To date, more than 3,900,000 people of various ages and backgrounds have benefited from MSAM, which receives an average of 150,000 visitors per year.
— Bernama
