Stories
The training was conducted on the 9th and 10th of July 2025 at Hammarsdale Community Hall. It was on various Sanlam Money Modules.The participants comprised mostly of Community Leadership and Assistant Teachers as it was during school holidays. They came in numbers as they were so eager to gain essential knowledge and skills to make informed and effective financial decisions, more so because they were aware that the training is aimed to build capacity within communities to better manage personal and household finances, and to serve as agents of financial education in their respective spheres of influence. Out of the five modules that were done, the most popular modules were the ones on Managing Risk and Money and the Tax Man. The participants were actively involved in calculating UIF deductions from different salary levels as per handout provided in the training and gaining hands-on experience in understanding how the system works. A key highlight was the discussion and clarification of various tax types, who pays them and how they are applied. This demystified many misconceptions around taxation and empowered attendees with practical knowledge. At the end of the session , participants shared their gratitude to be part of the training emphasizing that it has boosted their confidence in handling personal finance and they expressed their appreciation for practical examples and simplified explanations. There was a request for more sessions as they were more groups which could not be trained but unfortunately I had to tell them that we have reached our target for the year but we will consider their request for next year. This was one of the best groups I have trained, the interaction was amazing!
Training young people on personal finance is always enjoyable mainly because they engage more. I trained a group of learners from ABET, it was interesting and fruitful because not only was the session about personal finance but we touched a lot on starting their own businesses as they do different skills in an effort to start their own businesses, we were able to translate the training to business finance, it was important for them to understand that discipline in personal finances will lead to making good financial decisions in their businesses.
On the 11th of July, I had a rare opportunity of training people with disabilities on Sanlam Money Fo Sho. They were accompanied by their facilitator and the project director. The session was amazing; they participated with passion and enthusiasm. There was a time where we debated about gambling as one of the wants, we need to cut down on or stop. One gentleman shared a sad story of his relative who is addicted to gambling hence he believes gabling should be stopped. Another gentleman had different view, saying we need to have self-control in everything we do including gambling. We had so many interactions, which made the session amazingly interesting.
The Months of June and July were really fruitful in terms of the people I trained.I trained both in Colleges and the community,The 7th of July was most memorable because I went to train in a community that I once trained in,had to leave because it looked like people were finished or they were just not interested. The community of Hammarsdale,when I arrived Monday the 7th,there was a long line of people queued up to attend the sessions.If I'm not mistaken,there was over a hundred of them,I had to count 32 to enter the hall,the next 32 had to write down their names to attend on the Wednesday (I had asked my colleague Nozipho Khuzwayo to train them) and the 3rd set of 32,were to attend the following week (Had asked my colleague Pamela Myeni to train them) as Nozipho and I had depleted our targets. When I trained my 32 participants,I discovered that I had the EA's in my session,Assistant Teachers.The way they were so interested in topics such as UIF,Tax,Pension fund,Retirement Anuities.it was my first time having people whom we spend more time on the UIF activity (calculating Nobantu's UIF)I could also judge from the questions they asked that they were asking so that they know and understand,not just asking to pass the day.I really enjoyed the last 3 days at Hammarsdale,it's so rewarding to us trainers to get people who actually connect to the topics and find it relevant and beneficial to them to be a part of the training. We also had a few Teachers in the traing,permanent teachers.
Spent the last 8 days coaching 24 Green Business Value Chain entrepreneurs in Matatiele and its surrounding villages (Mvenyane, Masupha, Moiketsi, Sibi, Colana, Mxegwini (Mount Frere), eMapheleni (Mount Ayliff). What a humbling experience. Listening to their childhood stories and how that has shaped the men and women they are today and the type of business owners they will be, one could not help but be proud to be supporting them on their journey to grow their businesses. I was left with lots of hope and excitement after each and every session. Thank you AvoVision for providing me with this opportunity of interacting with such an amazing group of entrepreneurs.
On the 5th of July 2025, I had an opportunity of training the rural community of Greenside, Oshabeni, Ray Nkonyeni Municipality in Ugu District, the session was on Clientele's Enriched Money Fo Sho. Most of the people in this area are unemployed, but they responded positively to the invitation and participated enthusiastically. Both young and old participants worked well in groups, especially during the activities. They enjoyed the session, they even asked for more, asked for jobs as they always do in poverty-stricken communities. While we were doing finance and funerals, they raised a concern that some financial institution and burial societies do not inform their clients when a person has been insured above the threshold. They suggested that systems must be put in place to easily detect when an individual has been over insured by a certain underwriter. They truly enjoyed the session, and the certificates.
On the 30th of June and 1st of July, I attended training sessions with DCS staff in the Drakenstein management area in Paarl. Although we got off to a very slow start on both days, once training started the sessions became a breeze. Participants were particularly interested in learning how to budget and saving. Too often stories of how finances were sour were being shared. Fortunately we were able to turn the stories of misfortune to stories of hope, all because the participants left training very hopeful and willing to manage their finances better.
