Current News
Current News/Announcements
April 22-27, 2012: Making Cents Presents at 2012 CIES Conference
Making Cents recently took part in the 2012 Comparative and International Education Society (CIES) conference by presenting on ways to make entrepreneurship curricula accessible and relevant to young people. At the event, YFS-Link Program Manager, Rathi Mani, spoke to colleagues about Making Cents’ experience in developing and tailoring entrepreneurship curricula to be interactive and applicable to youth in Palestine and Liberia. The 2012 CIES conference focused on the “education revolution”, its legacy, current challenges, and promises for the future. For information about CIES, visit: http://www.cies.us/home.htm.
April 17, 2012: Conversations that Build and Strengthen Youth Economic Opportunities
On April 17, Hidde van der Veer, Executive Director of Aflatoun, and Aishwarya Lakshmi Ratan, Director of the Microsavings and Payments Innovation Initiative at Innovations for Poverty Action came to Making Cents and presented on the recently completed rigorous evaluation of Aflatoun’s school-based financial education program for youth in Ghana.
Ms. Ratan focused her presentation on how IPA uses randomized controlled trials to evaluate the theory of change of development programs such as Aflatoun, using survey methodology to measure the outcomes of interest. She also presented results from the evaluation, which showed that both programs successfully increasing student savings and shifted savings to school. Ms. Ratan and Mr. van der Veer then led participants in a discussion on the role of incorporating social components in a financial literacy curriculum aimed at youth.
Weren’t able to attend? Click here to see the PowerPoint presentation. Click here to watch a 10-minute video of key take-aways from the event.
To view Tweets from the learning event, please visit: https://twitter.com/#!/MakingCentsIntl.
April 2, 2012: New "State of the Field" Publication Now Available to Download
Review the outcomes and impact of the 2011 Global Youth Economic Opportunities Conference. Click here for a free download of this practical, "go-to" resource featuring learning from over 80 leading organizations that are working to increase and improve economic opportunities for young people around the world. Topics include:
- Workforce Development
- Financial Services and Capabilities
- Youth Enterprise Development
- Adolescent Girls & Young Women
- Monitoring,Evaluation, & Impact Assessment
Forward the link to others who might also find this resource useful: http://www.youtheconomicopportunities.org/media.asp
March 29, 2012: Making Cents Peer Reviews M&E/Youth Livelihood Guide Developed by World Bank and Global Partnership for Youth Employment
Making Cents staff recently served as peer reviewers for the newly released publication, Measuring Success of Youth Livelihood Interventions: A Practical Guide to Monitoring and Evaluation. The guide, developed by the World Bank and Global Partnership for Youth Employment, provides a comprehensive and accessible introduction of monitoring and evaluation and its application in the field of youth employment and livelihood development. Making Cents Founder and CEO, Fiona Macaulay, along with Veronica Torres, Director, Youth Economic Opportunities, contributed as peer reviewers. Click here to access a free copy of the document.
March 21, 2012: Making Cents Participates in NASDAQ Stock Market Opening Bell Ceremony
On March 21, Making Cents International joined Child and Youth Finance International (CYFI) as the organization rang in the NASDAQ stock market opening bell. The event helped highlight CYFI’s goal of ensuring 100 million children and youth have access to appropriate and low cost financial products by 2015. As a CYFI Supervisory Board Member, Making Cents attended the NASDAQ event to support the two organization’s shared vision of youth-inclusive financial services.
In keeping with that vision, Making Cents President Timothy Nourse participated in two sessions at CYFI’s International Summit in April. In a pre-conference event entitled, “Components of a National Child and Youth Strategy: The Experience of Malawi”, he discussed Making Cents’ development of a child savings product with Opportunity International Bank of Malawi. Later, Mr. Nourse will chair a discussion on innovative characteristics of child friendly banking products. The Summit, which took place April 3 - 4 in Amsterdam, brought together children, youth and senior level representatives from across various sectors on the topic of financial inclusion and Child and Youth Finance education for children and youth.
January 2012: Closing the Gap Between Evaluation and Practice in Youth Economic Empowerment
On January 13, Making Cents hosted Dr. Gina Chowa and her colleagues from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill to discuss efforts to measure the outcomes and impact of youth economic opportunity programs. Dr. Chowa and her team focused on the ethical, practical, and methodological benefits and challenges of different types of evaluation designs, comparing and contrasting experimental, quasi-experimental, and non-experimental approaches. Weren’t able to attend? Click here to view the presenters’ PowerPoint slides. To watch a 5-minute video of key take-aways from the event, please visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1yg0Im9Ck4. To view Tweets from the learning event, please visit: http://twitter.com/makingcentsintl.
December 1, 2011: Conversations that Build and Strengthen Youth Economic Opportunities Field
On December 1, 2011, Making Cents hosted Michael Chertok, co-founder and Chief Development Officer of Digital Divide Data (DDD), and Souphalak Souksavath, CFO of DDD in Laos, for an in-depth look at how the DDD model has provided employment in a sustainable way over the past 10 years to hundreds of marginalized and disadvantaged young people in Cambodia, Laos and Kenya. Participants walked away with transferable lessons learned, tips for your youth employment and entrepreneurship programs, and innovative ideas for addressing youth employment challenges in various contexts around the world. Weren’t able to attend? Read notes from the discussion, or watch the entire event from start to finish. You can also read tweets sent live during the event. Thanks to all who participated!
November 21, 2011: Making Cents President a Featured Speaker at Sanabel Workshop in Cairo, Egypt
During the November Sanabel Workshop, Revolutions and Uprisings in the Arab World: Managing the Crisis and Planning for the Future, Making Cents President, Timothy H. Nourse drew upon his extensive experience in microfinance in the Middle East and delivered a presentation about the importance of contingency planning. The Workshop--a first for Sanabel--was a response to members’ needs to discuss the current situation in the Microfinance sector in the MENA region, and how to plan for the future. Click here to learn more about the workshop.
Recent Events
October 2011: Video Interviews, Photos, and Resource Tools Now Available from Making Cents' Global Youth Economic Opportunities Conference
This year’s 5th anniversary conference convened more than 400 participants from 51 countries. Be among the first to view videos, photos and resource tools from the event:
- Click here to view interviews from conference participants, including Making Cents Founder & CEO, Fiona Macaulay, and USAID Deputy Administrator, Ambassador Donald Steinberg.
- Visit Microlinks to see the latest conference photos.
- Click here to download free resources from the conference’s Youth Financial Services and Financial Capabilities track.
- View conference tweets captured on the SEEP Network blog, and from @MakingCentsIntl.
October 2011: Youth-Inclusive Financial Services Linkage (YFS-Link) Program Course Offerings
Explore the financial services sector through a youth-inclusive lens via Making Cents' upcoming 2011 Youth-Inclusive Financial Services Linkage (YFS-Link) Program offerings:
- Training: Making a Case for YFS. Inter-American Forum on Microenterprise (Foromic), IDB, San José, Costa Rica. Oct 10-12 (Spanish).
- Training: Making a Case for YFS; Panel: Microfinance-Plus to Cultivating Young Clients.Global Microcredit Summit, Valladolid, Spain Nov 14-17.
Click here for more information.
September 7-9, 2011: Making Cents' 5th Annual Global Youth Economic Opportunities Conference in Washington, DC
The Global Youth Economic Opportunities Conference provides a learning platform for the world's leading professionals working to increase and improve economic opportunities for young people. This year's theme, Breakthroughs, reflects our 5th anniversary focus on the innovative ideas, proven practices, and visionary insights that are taking our emerging field to new heights. The five focus areas are: Workforce Development, Financial Services and Capabilities, Enterprise Development, Adolescent Girls and Young Women, and Monitoring, Evaluation and Impact Assessment.
Join 400 participants from over 60 countries to share lessons learned, promising practices, and innovative ideas by registering today. Click here to register and view the program agenda here. For a list of 2010 participants, click here.
September 1, 2011: "Financial Inclusion for Youth: Reaching the Next Generation" After Hours Seminar
This After Hours Seminar will highlight promising practices from BRAC's integrated approach towards empowering youth in Bangladesh and Sub-Saharan Africa, learning from SEEP's Practitioner Learning Program (PLP) on Reaching Scale in Youth Financial Services, and Making Cents' approach to creating practical tools and resources for developing quality financial services for the next generation. For more information, click here.
June 2011: Youth-Inclusive Financial Services Linkage (YFS-Link) Program Course Offerings
Explore the financial services sector through a youth-inclusive lens via Making Cents' summer 2011 Youth-Inclusive Financial Services Linkage (YFS-Link) Program training in Accra, Ghana. The training takes place from June 27 through July 8 and will include the following courses:
- Sound Practices Course
- Market Research with Youth
- Adapting and Developing Financial Services for Young People
- Partnering for Improved Service Delivery with Young People
- Staffing for Improved Service Delivery with Young People
For more information on the training, visit the YFS-Link Course Description site.
April 2011: Making Cents Participated in the Second China-US Foundation Leaders Exchange Program.
In April, 14 delegation members from Chinese foundations visited with nearly 20 foundations and non-profit organizations around the US. Making Cents International was one of the participating organizations, along with Innovations in Civic Participation, Ashoka Foundation, Harvard Business and Kennedy Schools, the Center for Effective Philanthropy, The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, among others. The objective of the Second China-US Foundation Leaders Exchange Program sponsored by Mercy Corps China and China Foundation Center was to introduce delegates to the new trends in the development of effective philanthropy in the US.
April 14, 2011: Making Cents President Leads Conversation on Youth Empowerment and ICT at TechSalon
Making Cents' President and Founder, Fiona Macaulay, helped lead a conversation about technology and youth economic empowerment during an April 14 TechSalon, hosted by ICT Works and the UN Foundation Technology Partnership. The salon explored three key questions:
- How are youth around the world getting jobs or starting businesses?
- What ways are organizations using technology to reach young people?
- Where should there be caution or enthusiasm about technology and its effect on youths' economic empowerment?
Click here to read co-moderator Linda Raftree's thoughts about the TechSalon, expressed on her blog in the Christian Science Monitor. For more information about the TechSalon, visit this site.
View our current newsletter:
Making Cents Quarterly Newsletter – Winter 2012
Making Cents Quarterly Newsletter -
Fall 2011