Meghalaya edu dept joins hands with NSE to impart financial literacy to state’s youth

Shillong: The state education department and National Stock Exchange (NSE) signed an MoU in the presence of chief minister Conrad K Sangma, education minister Rakkam A Sangma and other officials on Thursday to provide financial literacy to college students in banking, insurance and allied sectors.The CM said the entrepreneurs and youth of the state lack financial literacy and skills. NSE will help them make sound financial decisions, avoid risky consequences and help secure the future by making informed and wise decisions.On the other hand, a Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) conference on Indo-German cooperation for SDG localisation was held here on Wednesday, marking an important milestone in Meghalaya's journey towards sustainable development.Organised by the planning, investment, promotion and sustainable development department, the conference served as a podium to discuss the progress of the Indo-German cooperation towards attaining the UN's SDGs.Conrad said the numbers are not great for Meghalaya when it comes to SDGs due to a lot of challenges."In the last seven years, we have been able to make our teams and officers believe that we can achieve the goals," the CM said, emphasizing that the govt was working hard to converge the efforts made between different departments.He said the govt was working closely on the data aspect of ‘Meghalaya One', the ultimate goal of which is to create a centralised portal where every department's data and information are readily available.Gerald Guskowski of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit(GIZ) GmbH or German Corporation for International Cooperation shared an overview of the Green and Sustainable Development Partnership (GSDP) with the Government of Meghalaya and NITI Aayog and pointed out critical areas of work that will be done toward sustainable development initiatives across the state."SDG is not only a pathway for sustainable development but also a powerful tool for empowerment. Together, we are building a model for other states within the region to follow a model of partnership which is impactful and resilient," he said on the partnership with Meghalaya.Rajib Kumar Sen, senior adviser (SDGs), NITI Aayog said though Meghalaya may be one of the lowest in terms of other states in regards to SDG index, it has improved on its own performance over the last few years.