Financial literacy has long been an issue in South Africa. Developing a national savings culture, ensuring your client and consumers in general understand how to use credit responsibly and banking the un-banked are just a few of the top issues we have fought to address since democracy, with varying degrees of success. However, much work still needs to be done – especially as we enter the post COVID-19 ‘new normal’.
Yalu Chief Executive Officer, Tlalane Ntuli agrees that the economic downturn sparked by COVID-19 is likely to see South Africa experience significant job losses. Within this context, managing debt is going to be difficult for many South Africans.
According to Ntuli consumers must be empowered with a combination of great tools and the understanding of how to use them. He points out the following:
‘First, we must act on the fact that all players in our financial services sector have a mutual interest in ensuring that ongoing financial literacy and awareness campaigns are key components of our communications activities,’ says Ntuli.
‘Second, it means paying careful attention to the spirit and stipulations of the Consumer Protection Act by focusing strongly on clear, easy to understand product communication with all consumers. Every aspect of every financial product must be quickly comprehensible, and there should never be any important clauses or stipulations buried in the fine print.’
Ntuli’s advice is also critical for the Financial Adviser/Client relationship to ensure that clients are equipped with the knowledge and tools necessary to make sound financial decisions that will contribute to securing their financial stability going forward.
The FSCA has just completed it’s My Money series and also published a free downloadable guide “Be in control of your finances” to assist consumers to determine what else they can do to improve their financial wellness – a good download to share with your clients.
Click here to read Yalu’s media release.
