Society emphasises importance of savings culture

A SAVINGS culture is important in the current challenging economic times with many making unwise decisions because of lack of knowledge and skills on how to better manage their money, according to the Nasfund Contributors Savings and Loans (NCSL).
NCSL started a series of Financial Literacy Training and Awareness sessions for employees of Paradise Private Hospital (PPH) recently.
PPH dentist Emily Gabi, who attended the training with 90 other staff, said: “Many of us lack a savings culture. Most times we make poor financial decisions which drown us in debt.
“The session made me realise what to spend money on and what not to.”
Transport manager Dickson Luga said: “Most times my wants become needs on payday because I didn’t have a plan on what to use my money on.
“A lot of times, I prioritise things that are not important from our fortnight because I don’t do proper planning and budgeting,” he said.
Deputy director medical services Erica Opu said the training would now be used as a guide for her to identify needs from wants and use money on what was most important.
She encouraged her colleagues to have a strong mindset and be able to say no to things deemed not important. Data analyst Deborah Eli said the key takeaway for her was to properly plan how to use money when payday came.
The training which was facilitated by NCSL’s team leader northern region Jasper Kinaram and involve activities identifying needs and wants. The training is part of NCSL’s corporate social responsibility activities and part of the organisation’s five-year corporate plan.