"Siberian Tigers" may join outstanding financial education practices in Russia
In the heart of Siberia, a significant financial literacy event wrapped up – the "Krasnoyarsk Lions" CEO Championship. This year, the organizers applied to include the event in the national catalog of best practices, a yearly compilation commissioned by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation.
This marked the third time the Krasnoyarsk Krai held its CEO championship in financial literacy. Sixty-six teams from 20 cities and districts of the region participated in the competition this year. The top 10 teams made it to the finale, showcasing their video presentations, demonstrating functional literacy, and solving complex CEO challenges.
Each participant showed great creativity, teamwork, and strong knowledge, making it a challenging task for the jury.
The winners were:
- the 1st place went to MBOU SSH No.14 from Norilsk,
- the 2nd place was claimed by MAAOU SSH No.24 from Krasnoyarsk,
- the 3rd place was awarded to MBOU "Aginskaya SOSH No.2" from The Sayan District of the region.
All the winners received diplomas and certificates.
Vice-premier of the regional government, Minister of Finance Vladimir Bachar, commended the event, stating, "The 'Krasnoyarsk Lions' Championship is one of the most popular financial literacy events in the region. It annually brings together dozens of teams, with students seriously preparing for it by delving into complex financial issues. This year, we presented the Championship for publication in the federal catalog of regional best practices, a yearly compilation commissioned by the Ministry of Finance of Russia. This is an important step for expanding the regional experience to a national level."
In the application submitted by the region, details about the 'Krasnoyarsk Lions' CEO Championship were shared extensively. The competition has been held since 2023 and serves as a unique mechanism for engaging students and teenagers in collective cooperation related to financial literacy, motivating youth to gain new knowledge in this field. The competition involves representatives of the Central Bank, social foundations, cultural institutions – libraries, museums, theaters, universities, Family Centers, commercial companies, Government bodies – the Legislative Assembly, and the Ministry of Finance of the region.
The name 'Krasnoyarsk Lions' is not coincidental: a lion is one of the symbols of Krasnoyarsk, a character in the city's coat of arms. In its paws, it holds a tool used in gold mining. To this day, Krasnoyarsk Krai plays a significant role in filling the Russian treasury, remaining one of the leading gold-producing regions in the country, consistently ranking among the top three gold-mining subjects in Russia.
The competition welcomes students from the upper grades – teams consist of students from 8th, 9th, and 10th grades. Currently, over 800 school students from two dozen municipalities participate in the competition in Krasnoyarsk Krai. At least nine social partners are involved, along with volunteers. The competition is held in two stages: a distance stage and an on-site stage, which lasts approximately 4 hours. This stage is divided into three parts: team presentations, quick tasks, and CEO case studies.
Team presentations and quick tasks allow participants to dive into the theme, warm up before more serious tests.
The CEO case studies deal with current topics in financial literacy, scenarios which are developed based on real-life stories.
For example, in 2023, participants were asked to restore and model the solutions of a real-life business owner in fields such as education, health, and events, to help 'navigate the crisis.' In 2024, the CEO case studies focused on the well-developed regional initiative budgeting in the Krai. Teams were invited to present local initiative projects, interacting with experts, and the students successfully tackled all the tasks.
It's worth noting that the event has already received high praise in several competitions. For instance, according to the results of the 'KIVE 24' competition held by Higher School of Economics 'Krasnoyarskiye Lvy' were ranked in the top 150 innovative projects in Russia. The 'Krasnoyarsk Lions' CEO Championship was also included in the compilation of social-active technology education projects by the results of the All-Russian competition 'We're Raising a Citizen 23'.
In 2024, the experience of organizing the championship was presented at the All-Russian conference for the exchange of experience and presentation of best practices in the field of financial literacy. In the Krai, a program is being developed and implemented to raise the qualifications of teachers "Methodical School: resources for forming financial literacy" for pedagogues involved in the preparation of students for the championship.
Interestingly, the application to include the 'Krasnoyarsk Lions' CEO Championship in the rankings of the best financial literacy practices in Russia – is not the first such application.
In the past, several regional initiatives have been highly commended on a federal level, and in the first place, the Krai's Family Financial Festival. The total number of financial literacy events in the region exceeds 10,000 annually. We must not forget that in March, the Krai was deservedly recognized as the capital of financial culture, and 'The Lions' is one of its shining examples of 'capital city' status.
Photos: regional Ministry of Finance, Central Bank
- The 'Krasnoyarsk Lions' CEO Championship, the popular financial literacy event in Siberia, has now expanded its reach beyond regional boundaries, receiving approval for inclusion in the national catalog of best practices, commissioned by the Ministry of Finance of Russia.
- Aside from highlighting the importance of financial literacy, the 'Krasnoyarsk Lions' CEO Championship also covers key aspects of lifestyle, education-and-self-development, as participants delve into complex CEO challenges and learn valuable skills such as creativity, teamwork, and problem-solving, preparing them for a variety of future careers.
