Stories
On the 28th of February I conducted a Sanlam Worksite training session in KwaBhaca formally known as Mt Frere with Sanlam staff. Firstly it was a very nostalgic session because my late uncle used to work for Sanlam in Mt Frere in the 90's, so it was with that pride that I conducted the session. The participants were very engaging and very open to learning about budgeting as we did Money Module 1: My budget digging deeper on the day. We covered in depth Needs & wants, expenses and savings. Because we were in a rural setting, using a wheel of pot bread as a reference on the 50/30/20 became a thing. The session went very well and everyone present enjoyed it.
Henriette Jacobs, one of the participants and a young lady, found the training extremely beneficial. One of the things that stood out for her was the importance of not letting her funeral policy go into arreas, and if it does to go speak to the company to make arrangements for a lesser amount. Trying to stay out of debt was also something she vowed to work at. Please find attached her report. Angeline
Foord MTE took place at Toy library, training kids is such an amazing experience I've ever had, they enjoy each and every activity we do, the most important activity is when they are choosing what they are saving for with their parents😘, the parents are learning to control themselves. The challenges Participating of the parents is very poor. During season is a big challenge to have parents, they are at work, they have to ask other people to take part. What was noted is that that the kids needs break during that 2hours at least 10m break.
Laurium Capital took place in Villiersdorp community, the training was very helpful to the new learners, they have learned a lot about savings their money in different ways, which can makes them to invest more and more. The challenge we have in these groups is, getting paid after the training. Some the y did not go to work, because of they attending the training, most of the Farms it's No work No pay.
Vunani CFE took place at Theewaterskloof municipality at Villiersdorp town, it was interesting to do trainings with the taxi drivers and few Owners. It was not a good time for them, they were still fragile of what had happened on the 10th of February 2025, they don't want to take fotos but I was able to take one. Training taxi drivers was such an amazing experience I've ever seen, knowing that most of them, They can't even save or investing their money, it's challenging them, but I managed to show them the easiest way of saving money, The biggest challenge is their businesses that is too informal,and it also fluctuates during the the year due to seasonal times, it was also a lesson to have this training to see and listen hoe do they use their money. The most important thing is their participation, lots of questions and inputs, the very most important inputs is to have these trainings with their families,to have these trainings with their Owners.
On the 22nd of February, I trained the community of Umnini, situated on the South of Durban. Sihle Zikhali is an active member of the community who ensure that her community do not miss important and much needed opportunities. She invited her community, mainly the youth to attend the Money Fo Sho training session. They participated with enthusiasm, sharing their life experiences. The youth got a chance to learn about money management at an early age, which help them to make informed decisions on money matters.
This community came in numbers they appreciated this session and some were sharing how they always feel left out of most projects.However they asked if we can have a session mostly on tax as many had small business.this community faces a lot of challenges especially with teenage pregnancies many young people are trying to stand financially
Through the facilitation and support given by the two key organizations that works closely with people living with disabilities, namely Disability Economic Empowerment Trust (DEET) and Disabled People South Africa (DPSA), we were given an opportunity to train about 128 participants who are living with different forms of disabilities on Sanlam Money Fo's and money modular covering about 10 different modules, ranging from modules like (How to boost your income, savings & investing, budgeting and fraud & scams) which is a topic/ subject that they are most likely to be vulnerable to due to their disabilities. These trainings also happened at time of "silly season" period where people were exposed to scams. Some participants shared their personal stories of being scammed of their hard-earned money's and didn't even know how report or even spot different methods of scams, so this training helped them in many ways than one. Money modular 5 also helped them to unearth their inner potential, tapping deeper into their own skills and talent which they possess without noticing and helping them see the possibilities of them venturing into their own small businesses or side hustles since their wages and salaries cannot cover their daily and monthly living expenses, so this module really helped them. Some have already started looking and exploring different methods and options available in the market for saving & investment based on what they have learned in class secure for their children future, loved ones and themselves. This to me was a positive step towards a right direction and showed change of behavior, mindset & attitude. They were very happy and grateful to Avocado and Sanlam for giving them the opportunity to part-take in these valuable and informative sessions and wish AVO could extend them to the larger population and reach other areas in the province, especially to the disabled community. They have also requested AVO to come back in the new year with more trainings of this nature since they always feel neglected, undermined and left out. "AVO made us feel special and appreciated" THANK AVO & SANLAM
