The Québec Financial Education Strategy (QFES) 2023-2026 Action Plan is underpinned by a collective commitment from Québec organizations to support Quebeckers in developing financial knowledge and skills at every stage of life and whatever their circumstances.
The AMF, working in partnership with the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST), the Office de la protection du consommateur, Retraite Québec and Revenu Québec, is responsible for implementing the strategy.
Financial education: An essential tool
Quebeckers are living in a financial environment in which the ability to quickly access markets and information is making doing things easier but deciding what to do more difficult. The growing number of financial products available, technological innovations, the growing prevalence of digital platforms and the spread of unreliable content are amplifying risks at a time when many households are facing severe economic pressures. Digital transformation in the financial sector, accelerated by artificial intelligence, is intensifying these dynamics and resulting in significant differences among Quebeckers in their ability to understand and act, which is affecting their sense of empowerment and their trust in institutions.
Given this, financial education has become a critical protection, resilience and economic participation tool. While significant strides have been made since the launch of the QFES more than ten years ago, more structured and meaningful action is needed going forward to address increasingly complex issues.
An engaging vision
The 2026-2030 Action Plan is based on a structuring goal:
Orientations for taking consistent action
Driven by this vision, the action plan is focused on two groups of strategic orientations.
Strategic orientations for QFES partners:
- Engage partners in adopting and pursuing shared priorities and promote the expression of a collective voice
- Build capacity to coordinate financial education initiatives and organize structured mutual support
Strategic orientations for Quebeckers:
- Provide Quebeckers with readable and accessible financial education content
- Support Quebeckers in developing critical thinking
- Provide a coordinated, rapid response to emerging financial education needs
Three emerging areas for action
The orientations identified during the consultation were used to build consensus on a series of objectives and methods. Among the priorities outlined in this action plan, particular efforts will be required in three emerging areas.
Develop digital literacy while considering AI-related challenges
Information and tools used to guide personal financial decisions are being accessed in a complex digital environment using AI tools whose contours are still poorly understood. It is imperative for Quebeckers to possess the skills needed to safely and confidently navigate this environment.
Establish a coordinated, visible and accessible anti-fraud response
Given the threat of increasingly sophisticated and pervasive on-line financial fraud attempts, a coordinated and vigorous anti-fraud response is needed to protect the public and support victims. Québec has a rich network of organizations that are engaged in financial education; however, initiatives and approaches are dispersed and varied across the network, resulting in a need for structured collective action. The QFES signals a commitment to join forces, coordinate actions and speak with one collective and influential voice.
Developing a shared digital platform devoted to the financial education offering
One way to address the challenges faced in locating personal finance information is by leveraging a shared digital platform, a solution that was studied and confirmed as relevant in the previous action plan.
Strategic orientations
Engage partners in adopting and pursuing shared priorities and promote the expression of a collective voice
In an ecosystem populated by multiple stakeholders with diverse mandates, areas of expertise and realities, the ability to make consistent progress depends on the existence of a common set of clearly shared priorities. As long as efforts are not better aligned, there will continue to be a risk of fragmentation or duplication and the synergies of working together will not be fully harnessed.
This strategic orientation also relates to the ability of the QFES to support the expression of a collective voice. In addition to building consensus among partners, it includes making sure that areas of collective action supported by the QFES enjoy greater visibility, credibility and influence with the public and concerned stakeholders. A collective voice helps give not only greater prominence to financial literacy issues but also greater weight to messages, priorities and contributions across the ecosystem.
Objective 1.1
Provide structured QFES governance supported by active coordination
The QFES must continue to be underpinned by clear governance and active coordination to ensure consistent work, support consensus building among partners and facilitate the implementation of shared priorities. This implies making a sustained effort to clearly define roles, provide effective coordination mechanisms and ensure the AMF’s continued leadership of the QFES in maintaining partner engagement and building capacity for collective action.
Objective 1.2
Define a shared framework and disseminate coordinated messages with wide public reach
To increase the QFES’s leverage, the partners must be able to rely on shared reference points and messages. This objective aims to clarify the shared foundations of financial education efforts and to promote a coordinated voice in order to increase the QFES’s reach and recognition among the public.
Objective 1.3
Develop a shared digital platform for the financial education offering
Establishing a shared digital platform is intended to make the financial education offering more visible, accessible and consistent. The platform will facilitate access to information, help better orient audiences and amplify the collective impact of partners’ contributions.
Increase the capacity to manage financial education initiatives and organize structured mutual assistance
Not all QFES partners have the same levers, resources or level of expertise to design, implement and tweak their financial education actions. In this context, increasing their capacity to manage their own activities is key to improving the reach and complementarity of activities carried out within the ecosystem.
Several partners have also developed expertise in a particular area or with a specific audience. This strategic orientation relies on implementing a more structured system of inter-partner assistance. By supporting the sharing of expertise, practices, tools and lessons learned, the QFES can help speed up the flow of useful knowledge and further empower all the actors involved.
Objective 2.1
Pool resources in order to deliver large-scale projects
The partners can do more together than they can on their own, and deliver projects together that they cannot deliver on their own, by pooling human and financial resources. This objective is intended to support more structured collaborative actions, increase the leverage of investments made and encourage the implementation of large-scale initiatives for the benefit of the ecosystem.
Objective 2.2
Share knowledge, tools and impact metrics
By sharing knowledge, tools and impact metrics, the partners can build on their shared experiences, improve their practices and better assess the impact of their initiatives. This objective aims to facilitate the flow of expertise within the QFES and build further capacity across the ecosystem.
Objective 2.3
Align communications and the leveraging of existing content
This goal is to improve the flow, and thereby increase the reach and usefulness, of financial education content. By focusing on better coordination of partners’ dissemination efforts and social marketing approaches, it aims to not only reinforce the impact of existing resources but to also more concretely affect positive attitudes and behaviours, resulting in an offering with better reach that actively supports the drive to action.
Provide citizens with readable and accessible financial education content
Access to clear, understandable and easy-to-find financial information is essential to helping Quebeckers make better informed decisions in their everyday lives. However, content overload, subject matter complexity and format heterogeneity can hinder their ability to truly absorb information even when it is available. In this context, making financial education content more readable and accessible is an important lever for enhancing content usefulness and reach.
This orientation is intended to promote an offering better aligned with the realities, needs and abilities of the various audiences. It signals a commitment to making financial education more tangible, understandable and accessible so that Quebeckers can find useful reference points in a timely manner and make more informed and confident choices.
Objective 3.1
Apply plain language standards and a shared approach to content design
The goal of applying plain language standards and a shared approach to content design is to make financial education information more understandable, consistent and accessible for Quebeckers. This objective aims to improve the quality of disseminated content while encouraging shared reference points that support a more streamlined and uniform experience across tools and organizations.
Objective 3.2
Utilize targeted multi-channel communication to reach young citizens
The goal of utilizing targeted multi-channel communication is to reach Québec youth by using formats, channels and approaches aligned with their habits and realities. This objective aims to increase the reach of financial education content and give preference to information access that is more direct, relevant and engaging.
Support Quebeckers in developing critical thinking
Financial information today is abundant, takes many forms and is of uneven quality. It is therefore essential for Quebeckers to develop critical thinking. Beyond access to content, this means building their capacity to ask questions, put information in perspective, recognize influences and use their judgment when considering financial options. It also means helping them more clearly identify useful information, self-serving speech and shortcuts that can help guide their decisions.
Financial education, instead of being solely focused on the transfer of information, can be a lever for discernment. By supporting the development of critical thinking, the QFES aims to give Quebeckers the tools to understand what is offered to them, put related issues in perspective and make more conscious and informed decisions.
Objective 4.1
Stimulate dialogue and reflection around personal finance practice cases
Using practice cases grounds financial education in real-life scenarios and supports Quebeckers in applying the lessons learned in their own lives. This objective aims to promote opportunities for dialogue and reflection that support judgment development, perspective-taking and a more nuanced understanding of financial options.
Objective 4.2
Take a positive coaching stance aligned with target audiences’ real-life experiences
This objective advances a way to coach Quebeckers that is simultaneously constructive, reassuring and grounded in real-life experiences. By taking into account the life circumstances, constraints and concrete needs of audiences, it aims to foster a more engaging relationship with financial education and to empower Quebeckers to act.
Objective 4.3
Develop digital literacy that incorporates issues related to artificial intelligence
The goal of developing digital literacy is to give Quebeckers the tools to navigate an increasingly complex information environment defined, especially, by the ascendance of artificial intelligence. This objective aims to build their capacity to locate, interpret and critically assess on-line financial information so they can make a more informed judgment about the content, recommendations and digital tools they encounter.
Provide a coordinated, rapid response to emerging financial education needs
Needs in financial education do not emerge in a stable environment but instead change with evolving economic pressures, technological innovations, consumption practices and situations that are destabilizing some groups faster than others. It is therefore critical for the QFES to have the capacity to read weak signals and changes in Quebeckers’ lived experiences and to have the reading circulate swiftly within the ecosystem.
The goal is not only to react quickly but also to provide partners with a shared understanding of needs as they emerge and enable them to more effectively coordinate with each other in order to adjust their actions. This orientation is intended to enhance collective vigilance, QFES responsiveness and the relevance of responses to constantly changing realities.
Objective 5.1
Establish shared emerging needs monitoring
Many of the partners are close to the audiences they serve, enabling them to refine their expertise in specific matters. Shared monitoring will supplement their expertise, allowing them to identify emerging needs more quickly and draw on a shared reading of the realities in flux. This objective aims to structure the flow of useful information within the QFES to support faster, more soundly based and better-coordinated adjustments.
Objective 5.2
Enhance coordinated actions focused on vulnerable populations
In responding to realities where needs are often more pressing, more complex or insufficiently considered, this objective is intended to ensure that actions are more closely aligned with lived circumstances. It aims to more adequately support vulnerable populations by leveraging actor complementarity and better coordination of efforts.
Objective 5.3
Implement a coordinated, visible and accessible anti-fraud response
This objective is intended to better protect Quebeckers against ever-evolving fraud risks. By promoting coordinated action among the partners, it aims to bring greater clarity to prevention efforts, facilitate access to concrete reference points and enable a more timely response to fraud situations.
Achieving this objective requires an increased ability to circulate information on the red flags of fraud, harmonize prevention messages and refer target audiences to trusted resources on a timely basis. This is an ongoing objective that is in addition to the key moments during the year that are devoted to fraud prevention.
Engage partners in adopting and pursuing shared priorities and promote the expression of a collective voice
In an ecosystem populated by multiple stakeholders with diverse mandates, areas of expertise and realities, the ability to make consistent progress depends on the existence of a common set of clearly shared priorities. As long as efforts are not better aligned, there will continue to be a risk of fragmentation or duplication and the synergies of working together will not be fully harnessed.
This strategic orientation also relates to the ability of the QFES to support the expression of a collective voice. In addition to building consensus among partners, it includes making sure that areas of collective action supported by the QFES enjoy greater visibility, credibility and influence with the public and concerned stakeholders. A collective voice helps give not only greater prominence to financial literacy issues but also greater weight to messages, priorities and contributions across the ecosystem.
Objective 1.1
Provide structured QFES governance supported by active coordination
The QFES must continue to be underpinned by clear governance and active coordination to ensure consistent work, support consensus building among partners and facilitate the implementation of shared priorities. This implies making a sustained effort to clearly define roles, provide effective coordination mechanisms and ensure the AMF’s continued leadership of the QFES in maintaining partner engagement and building capacity for collective action.
Objective 1.2
Define a shared framework and disseminate coordinated messages with wide public reach
To increase the QFES’s leverage, the partners must be able to rely on shared reference points and messages. This objective aims to clarify the shared foundations of financial education efforts and to promote a coordinated voice in order to increase the QFES’s reach and recognition among the public.
Objective 1.3
Develop a shared digital platform for the financial education offering
Establishing a shared digital platform is intended to make the financial education offering more visible, accessible and consistent. The platform will facilitate access to information, help better orient audiences and amplify the collective impact of partners’ contributions.
Increase the capacity to manage financial education initiatives and organize structured mutual assistance
Not all QFES partners have the same levers, resources or level of expertise to design, implement and tweak their financial education actions. In this context, increasing their capacity to manage their own activities is key to improving the reach and complementarity of activities carried out within the ecosystem.
Several partners have also developed expertise in a particular area or with a specific audience. This strategic orientation relies on implementing a more structured system of inter-partner assistance. By supporting the sharing of expertise, practices, tools and lessons learned, the QFES can help speed up the flow of useful knowledge and further empower all the actors involved.
Objective 2.1
Pool resources in order to deliver large-scale projects
The partners can do more together than they can on their own, and deliver projects together that they cannot deliver on their own, by pooling human and financial resources. This objective is intended to support more structured collaborative actions, increase the leverage of investments made and encourage the implementation of large-scale initiatives for the benefit of the ecosystem.
Objective 2.2
Share knowledge, tools and impact metrics
By sharing knowledge, tools and impact metrics, the partners can build on their shared experiences, improve their practices and better assess the impact of their initiatives. This objective aims to facilitate the flow of expertise within the QFES and build further capacity across the ecosystem.
Objective 2.3
Align communications and the leveraging of existing content
This goal is to improve the flow, and thereby increase the reach and usefulness, of financial education content. By focusing on better coordination of partners’ dissemination efforts and social marketing approaches, it aims to not only reinforce the impact of existing resources but to also more concretely affect positive attitudes and behaviours, resulting in an offering with better reach that actively supports the drive to action.
Provide citizens with readable and accessible financial education content
Access to clear, understandable and easy-to-find financial information is essential to helping Quebeckers make better informed decisions in their everyday lives. However, content overload, subject matter complexity and format heterogeneity can hinder their ability to truly absorb information even when it is available. In this context, making financial education content more readable and accessible is an important lever for enhancing content usefulness and reach.
This orientation is intended to promote an offering better aligned with the realities, needs and abilities of the various audiences. It signals a commitment to making financial education more tangible, understandable and accessible so that Quebeckers can find useful reference points in a timely manner and make more informed and confident choices.
Objective 3.1
Apply plain language standards and a shared approach to content design
The goal of applying plain language standards and a shared approach to content design is to make financial education information more understandable, consistent and accessible for Quebeckers. This objective aims to improve the quality of disseminated content while encouraging shared reference points that support a more streamlined and uniform experience across tools and organizations.
Objective 3.2
Utilize targeted multi-channel communication to reach young citizens
The goal of utilizing targeted multi-channel communication is to reach Québec youth by using formats, channels and approaches aligned with their habits and realities. This objective aims to increase the reach of financial education content and give preference to information access that is more direct, relevant and engaging.
Support Quebeckers in developing critical thinking
Financial information today is abundant, takes many forms and is of uneven quality. It is therefore essential for Quebeckers to develop critical thinking. Beyond access to content, this means building their capacity to ask questions, put information in perspective, recognize influences and use their judgment when considering financial options. It also means helping them more clearly identify useful information, self-serving speech and shortcuts that can help guide their decisions.
Financial education, instead of being solely focused on the transfer of information, can be a lever for discernment. By supporting the development of critical thinking, the QFES aims to give Quebeckers the tools to understand what is offered to them, put related issues in perspective and make more conscious and informed decisions.
Objective 4.1
Stimulate dialogue and reflection around personal finance practice cases
Using practice cases grounds financial education in real-life scenarios and supports Quebeckers in applying the lessons learned in their own lives. This objective aims to promote opportunities for dialogue and reflection that support judgment development, perspective-taking and a more nuanced understanding of financial options.
Objective 4.2
Take a positive coaching stance aligned with target audiences’ real-life experiences
This objective advances a way to coach Quebeckers that is simultaneously constructive, reassuring and grounded in real-life experiences. By taking into account the life circumstances, constraints and concrete needs of audiences, it aims to foster a more engaging relationship with financial education and to empower Quebeckers to act.
Objective 4.3
Develop digital literacy that incorporates issues related to artificial intelligence
The goal of developing digital literacy is to give Quebeckers the tools to navigate an increasingly complex information environment defined, especially, by the ascendance of artificial intelligence. This objective aims to build their capacity to locate, interpret and critically assess on-line financial information so they can make a more informed judgment about the content, recommendations and digital tools they encounter.
Provide a coordinated, rapid response to emerging financial education needs
Needs in financial education do not emerge in a stable environment but instead change with evolving economic pressures, technological innovations, consumption practices and situations that are destabilizing some groups faster than others. It is therefore critical for the QFES to have the capacity to read weak signals and changes in Quebeckers’ lived experiences and to have the reading circulate swiftly within the ecosystem.
The goal is not only to react quickly but also to provide partners with a shared understanding of needs as they emerge and enable them to more effectively coordinate with each other in order to adjust their actions. This orientation is intended to enhance collective vigilance, QFES responsiveness and the relevance of responses to constantly changing realities.
Objective 5.1
Establish shared emerging needs monitoring
Many of the partners are close to the audiences they serve, enabling them to refine their expertise in specific matters. Shared monitoring will supplement their expertise, allowing them to identify emerging needs more quickly and draw on a shared reading of the realities in flux. This objective aims to structure the flow of useful information within the QFES to support faster, more soundly based and better-coordinated adjustments.
Objective 5.2
Enhance coordinated actions focused on vulnerable populations
In responding to realities where needs are often more pressing, more complex or insufficiently considered, this objective is intended to ensure that actions are more closely aligned with lived circumstances. It aims to more adequately support vulnerable populations by leveraging actor complementarity and better coordination of efforts.
Objective 5.3
Implement a coordinated, visible and accessible anti-fraud response
This objective is intended to better protect Quebeckers against ever-evolving fraud risks. By promoting coordinated action among the partners, it aims to bring greater clarity to prevention efforts, facilitate access to concrete reference points and enable a more timely response to fraud situations.
Achieving this objective requires an increased ability to circulate information on the red flags of fraud, harmonize prevention messages and refer target audiences to trusted resources on a timely basis. This is an ongoing objective that is in addition to the key moments during the year that are devoted to fraud prevention.
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End of the InformationDocumentation
To view the documents and archives of the Québec Financial Education Strategy, see the section Publications