South Africa isn’t the best when it comes to handling money. We’re not just talking about the government, either, but the general population it serves. More and more people are struggling as costs continue to trend upwards, while salaries… don’t. To combat this, FNB has launched Fincents, a financial education hub with the hopes of teaching financial literacy and bringing the country’s underserved populous onto an even playing field.
Talk about financial sense, amirite?
It’s all free of charge, too, with the only costs incurred being the price of mobile data. Better yet, it doesn’t discriminate against those who bank elsewhere. Registration requires no more than an email address and some personal information, after which you’ll gain access to “micro learning modules, articles, videos, and other content formats,” all of which can be downloaded and used offline for later.
A massive 48% of South African adults struggle to keep their finances under control, according to the FCSA Financial Literacy Baseline Survey. Lytania Johnson, FNB’s Personal Segment CEO, says that underserved communities and women bear the brunt of this knowledge gap.
“We view it as critical for us to open up our capabilities and expertise to empower South Africans from all walks of life with potentially life-changing financial knowledge,” she continued.
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For a country lacking the necessary education in the first place, it was critical that FNB designed Fincents to be as simple to follow as possible, placing a large focus on visual aids, and as few uses of complicated terminology as possible. Readily available and generally digestible educational materials were a must for Fincents, FNB said, as most financial education tends not to stick on the first go around.
Completing the short registration process will offer access to a variety of courses, ranging from the basics of managing a budget to lessons on how best to leave behind a legacy when you’re gone. It’s all the information many claim to have missed out on in school, made free and easily accessible to just about anyone with an internet connection.
While the site is still fresh-faced, FNB plans to continually expand the platform. “We’re actively exploring including content around additional subject areas like homeownership, vehicle finance, cryptocurrency, and more. We also plan to include specialised content tailored to niche audiences, such as educators (for use in the classroom) and parents (for age-appropriate financial conversations with their children),” said Dhashni Naidoo of FNB Consumer Education.
