FINANCIAL KNOWLEDGE IS KEY!

By KOPANO MONAHENG

EVERYONE plays a vital part in society and it’s important that people are financially independent.

This is why Metropolitan has taken it upon itself to educate South Africans about money and their well-being.

The investment company, which has been serving people for more than 125 years now, has recently been organising roundtable discussions with the aim to ensure everyone understands money.

Tlalane Ntuli, chief marketing officer at Metropolitan, said not everyone has to go to tertiary to learn more about investment and finances.

But through collaborations, like what they are doing now, people will get informed about money.

“Lots of education that happens in the job and in partnerships does really help people to know a lot about investment and finances,” she said.

Tlalane said people can learn from one another and that’s what Metropolitan Thematic Media Roundtable is all about.

According to a 2023 survey done by Deloitte, which compares South Africa’s savings rate with other countries, the country’s saving habits are far below average.

This makes it more critical to drive awareness about savings among South Africans.

Research shows that there is no good or bad savings personality – when it comes to savings, it’s important to understand the natural traits you are working with to set in place a strategy that matches your reality.

The high cost of living is forcing people to spend more money on daily living expenses and essentials, leaving little to nothing for savings.

“The reality is that most people are living hand to mouth and simply don’t have enough money to spend, never mind save,” said Mapalo Makhu from Women & Finance. She said factors such as living beyond your means – splurging on items you know you can’t afford in the hopes that you’ll somehow make it through the month – and lack of financial knowledge to assist people navigate their financial space are drivers of the poor savings culture in our country.

“Through Metropolitan Sisonke in Savings campaign last year, we learnt that South Africans are giving each other more realistic advice that takes stock of people’s realities. We nonetheless believe that the findings from our campaign still stand true. The one thing that is evident is that people from all walks of life benefit from advice.”

She concluded by saying that as South Africans we need to relook how we view savings and get our institutions and advisers to meet people where they are.