Nasfund continues savings awareness with kids’ account

 NASFUND Contributors Society Ltd (NCSL) has launched a new savings account for children yesterday in Port Moresby.

General manager Vari Lahui said the Kid Savings Account (KSA) was an initiative by NCSL to instil a savings culture and supported the Bank of Papua New Guinea’s national strategy for financial inclusion and literacy that was rolled out early this year.

“Like any discipline exposing children to a savings culture at a very young age gets them into a habit and culture of becoming pro-efficient at it and there is every chance that they will practise this at older age,” Lahui said.

“Our Kids Savings Account is a trustee type arrangement where a parent will hold the funds in trust for their child and there will be restrictions on withdrawals which will only be allowed in exceptional cases such as when the child needs funds for emergency requirement. The intention is for the parents to grow the funds in the kis saving account untilk the child turn 18 when the parents hands over control of the account to the child.”

Lahui said the KSA is being piloted in Bavaroko and Coronation primary schools and has so far opened 36 accounts with more than K5000 already held in deposits.

He added that NCSL aimed to register at least 1000 more accounts by the end of July.