“Without goals, and plans to reach them, you are like a ship
that has set sail with no destination.” — Fitzhugh Dodson
What are your financial goals for 2017?
Allow me the opportunity to wish all the readers of NAMFISA
Consumer Education Bulletin a belated happy new year.
The role of our consumer education intervention is to create
awareness and to educate the general public about their rights
and responsibilities when dealing with financial service / product
providers as well as the available recourse mechanisms while at the
same time encouraging behaviour change.
Among numerous benefits, NAMFISA aims to:
Reducing reckless spending and borrowing
Promote a culture of saving
Increase financial inclusion
Increase knowledge about financial services and products
Promote personal financial planning through budgeting
And most importantly, assist consumers in knowing their rights
and responsibilities in daily dealings with their personal finances
As consumers of the financial services and products, every
financial year we pledge to keep new resolutions, always with a
smile, because of cause we resolve to better ourselves in one way or
another – knowledge-wise, health-wise, money-wise, etc.
But, do we really keep our resolutions? Obviously the answer is,
“not always.” Actually only a few people meet their resolutions,
because resolutions are easy to set and extremely difficult to
achieve.
The holiday season has only just passed and none of us has yet
forgotten the joy and happiness we had with our beloved family and
friends during that festive and relaxing time.
But, now it is time for us to immigrate from that holiday spirit
to face realities, including the monthly bills that need to be paid.
Are we resilient and able to bounce back to financial shape and
face our bills and financial obligations head on?
Below are a few tips on how to bounce back:
As a consumers, you need to be pro-active with your financial
needs.
Re-evaluate your financial position.
Re-asses your financial needs.
Evaluate your budget to make sure you’re on track with your
normal monthly spending
Ensure that your insurance premiums are paid on time.
Honor all contractual obligations and pay what is due to others.
Pay all installments on the agreed upon date.
If you saved money from your holiday time, boost your credit
score by asking for a “good faith adjustment” in your amount due
and pay more than what is owed.
I wish you happy reading and urge you to stick to your 2017
financial resolutions.
CEO: NAMFISA
Kenneth S. Matomola
