As part of its participation in the Financial Inclusion Week, the Housing and Development Bank (HDB) is present at a number of universities and youth centres across Egypt to raise the awareness of dealing with banks. The bank will also distribute a number of "Felousy" prepaid cards to university students, next to offering fee-free products and services. The bank will also be offering discounts on fees for loans and financing SMEs to encourage clients to deal with the banking sector. The bank said that the events of this week aim to emphasise the principles of financial inclusion and expand the client base and the number of customers dealing with financial inclusion. It noted that, in line with the CBE's financial inclusion directives, the bank also expanded its branches across the nation. It explained that the bank opened ten new branches in different governorates in 2016 and is set to open ten more in 2017, to be added to its 73 current branches. The bank said that it had a prominent role in spreading financial culture among children and youth with the cooperation of the Ministry of Education. The bank also had a great role in disseminating financial culture among youth and children, as it is a member in Child and Youth Finance International (CYFI), which is affiliated with the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), in collaboration with the Egyptian Banking Institute and the CBE. Moreover, the bank stated that it is keen on participating in the Global Money Week every year through inviting a number of school and university students to visit the bank's branches in order to learn about the bank's operations and the services it provides. The Suez Canal Bank organises workshops and seminars for business associations to familiarise them with financial inclusion. The corporate communications manager at the Suez Canal Bank, Nour Elzeny, said that the bank participated in the CBE's financial inclusion initiative through organising a number of activities that promote the initiative among large segments of society and maximise attracting new clients. She explained that the bank supported the "Bank Account for Every Citizen" campaign, which enables citizens to open fee-free bank accounts without a required minimum balance, along with offering a free debit card for the first year. The bank has also printed and distributed flyers to introduce the concept to citizens and sent SMSs to many Egyptians in order to introduce them to the campaign. Elzeny said that the activities of the bank in the Financial Inclusion Week also include hanging banners with the logo of the celebration and the CBE on all of its 36 branches. Moreover, the bank has printed the flyer provided by the CBE and distributed them to existing and targeted clients. The flyer was also posted on the website to ease procedures for citizens who want to learn about financial inclusion and its importance. She noted that the bank has also organised a workshop for staff within the bank and familiarised them with promotional activities associated with the campaign. The employees also published the details of the campaign on their social media accounts in order to promote it further. The bank also held seminars for some of business associations to introduce them to the concept.
