Taipei, Nov. 6 (CNA) Almost two-thirds of Taiwanese teenagers said they wanted to learn more about money management, but they are not provided with such instruction in schools, a survey found.
While 64 percent of Taiwan's teens said they want to learn more about how to manage money, only three percent have received help from school teachers and professors, according to the result of a "Teens and Money" survey conducted by Citigroup.
The results, combined with a deteriorating credit crisis common among students, showed that an educational program in financial literacy is much needed, said Joyce Fang, a National Taiwan University professor.
Schools are not alone in this respect, as government agencies and banks have joined the collective effort. A three-year financial literacy campaign has been launched by the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC), said Gary Tseng, director general of the Banking Bureau.
Citigroup has also earmarked US$2 million for a worldwide financial literacy program, said Dara Duguay, director of Citigroup's Office of Financial Education.
"Teenagers are taught to make money, and they are pretty good at spending money -- obviously. However, no one is teaching them how to manage money," said Duguay.
The survey, which aimed to analyze the attitudes of Asian teenagers and young adults on money matters and personal finance, was conducted in Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea, based on responses of 900 respondents aged between 15 to 18.
Teenagers in Taiwan receive the second highest weekly allowance, -- behind Hong Kong -- and 64 percent rely on their parents as the only source of money, the survey found.