Start the savings habit
MEC launches July National Savings Month campaign and encourages children to save.
KZN MEC for Finance, Belinda Scott, kick-started a campaign over the weekend, urging both young and old to adopt and develop a savings culture.
Under the theme: ‘My savings, my future: time to build’, July has been declared National Savings Month.
‘As a nation, South Africans do not have a culture of saving and it’s important to understand the need to save for consumers and the country as a whole,’ said Scott.
‘While government and corporates are saving, individual citizens are not and the trend appears to be getting worse each year.’
Scott detailed this year’s national savings month objectives: To promote debate around key aspects of savings; To raise awareness of the benefits of short, medium and long term planning; To build relationships with key partners to leverage future opportunities; To foster a culture of saving within a local and international context; To complement the messaging being generated through the social security and retirement reform process; To make it meaningful and relevant to the youth and entrepreneurs.
The message was further emphasised by the Head of KZN Treasury, Simiso Magagula.
‘Use credit sparingly and carefully, you must be mindful and think twice before buying things you cannot afford.
‘We discourage bad borrowing and encourage people to adjust their lifestyle and the manner in which they live so they can accommodate the redirection of income into saving.
‘It is also important to develop a savings plan.‘Work out a household budget, and then stick to the plan.
‘It is important to involve the whole family even children when budgeting because it is crucial to keep them on the straight path of responsible financial management up to their old age.
‘We encourage parents to buy saving boxes for their children so that they can adopt a savings culture at an early age.’
