Stories
On the 7th of June 2025, I was asked by Busisiwe Ntuli, Induna of Tshehlophe in Mdumezulu, the deep rural part part of Umbumbulu, KZN, to come and enlighten her community as they lack financial knowledge. The session was held at her home in a rondavel house. They welcomed me with open arms and enjoyed the session. They enjoyed the game of needs and wants and promised to spend wisely when they get money. They also enjoyed the planning of the funeral, their funeral were very cheap as most of the thing were done locally, like the graves which are dug in their yards and big rondavel where they gather for funerals and other events. The dusty road with pot holes was a challenge, but the community was very welcoming. Induna requested that I come back for other members of the community who couldn't attend because there was a big function in the neighbouring village.
On the 18th of May 2025, I trained the community of Mfume, South of Durban, KZN. The session was held at Mfume Primary School and the recruitment was done by Buyisiwe Linda who is the member of the South African Positive Women Ambassadors. She managed to recruit 32 participants as they always work with the community. The Community loved the session in such a way that some of them shared their experiences of Road Accident Fund issues and insurance companies that refused to pay when their loved ones passed away. This sesssion was like an eye opener to most of them, as they had limited knowledge when it comes to financial issues. They enjoyed the activities, most of all they enjoyed planning for a funeral, they came up with many ideas and they managed to save a lot of money by planning cheaper but dignified funerals. If given another opportunity, I'd definitely go back this community, because they participated with open minds and enthusiasm. I'm grateful to Avo for giving me the opportunity to meet different types of people, sharing ideas of managing money better.
On the 14th and the 16th of May 2025, I trained my Health Promotion Officer Students on modules 11, 12 and 6. This was a good opportunity for them to prepare them for the workplace to learn about managing their finances. They learned about different insurances and how to choose the types of insurances they need. which will help them to choose wisely when they start their careers and make them grow money wisely. I also trained them on buying the big ticket items, so when the time comes for them to buy a car or a house they would know that the price of the house appreciates and the price of the car depreciates. In this topic they learned how to master their financial problems and understood that one cannot spend more than they earn. These sessions had a great impact on my students, because they will rectify the bad credit history habits of their parents. we are building a credit savvy generation that will know how to handle their finances. The next module we did was based on how to chose the right insurance and the importance of choosing only the insurance they need. This was educate them more on how important insurance is and why it is important. In the end they learned that having an insurance is important to avoid losing paying a lot of money in cases of unexpected events. As most of them already have young children, I also trained them on how to teach children about money. Soon I will be educating them on money fo sho, to ensure that they are financially fit when they start their employment journey.
I had the privilege to train ex-addicts at the community youth centre were finances came to the picture that led them to drugs due to their families financial background. The attendance was satisfactory as expected.
The training went well with the surprising turn over when it comes to attendance, one crucial challenge facing the participants was Youth unemployment versus their financial obligations. They emphasize that the amount of interest charged on their arrears interest is not lawful and the NCR is not protecting the rights of the consumers as stipulated in their act.
It was such a pleasure to engage with the field workers of Nal'ibali organisation who are running a Reading Program in the schools around the upper highway area(Hillcrest). The Money Fo Sho training took place from the 20th to the 24th of May in the different venues for different groups. The energy that all the groups had was amazing, there was interaction in almost all the topics of the session and what stood out were the experiences they shared on how they quickly lost ownership of their money because of lacking the knowledge on stretching their budgets. Managing risk was another eye opener for them, getting clarity on how the insurance policies can save one from using the money that was set aside for financial goals with the aim of bringing progress to your life and make you a better person. Every group wished that they had the Consumer Financial Education training just when they started working on the project as May was their last month but they were so grateful about the information gained as it has equipped them with all the skills they need to make informed decisions in money matters.The group coordinator even mentioned in her speech on behalf of all the groups that the session changed their perspective to money matters which they will forever cherish as they embark on a journey of being unemployed again as now they know that selling your talent or your skill is one way of boosting your income and making ends meet. I am looking forward to more engagements with this new contact (Nal'ibali) in the future.
I have recently had the opportunity to train 185 participants from throughout Inxuba Yethemba Municipality on Clientele Money Fo'Sho. Participation at these sessions was quiet remarkable, as participants shared their stories and experiences. Many of whom were avid Stokvel members so they were very akin to Saving. They also quiet enjoyed discussing Managing debt and opting for budgeting and setting goals over taking things on higher purchase. A particular point of interest though was covering funerals and insurances. The areas in which the trainings were held are well known for funeral insurance fraud, where people have made it business to get wealthy off of taking covers for people and then getting them killed. Learning about ways of protecting themselves and their family members thus became very interesting to the participants.
Clientele MFS- Most of these trainings took place in Khayelitsha in a small area called Endlovini, I had 3 different groups to train. There were different ages young adult and elders. It was very interesting to hear different views from different generations. Helping to understand the different between a goal and a dream and allowing them to write them down a transformation on its own. Most of them they said they did not know how to separate needs from wants, they used to mix everything together. The 50% 30% 20% principle was very helpful in order for them to draft their budget. My highlight was even more when they were doing their role plays on planning for funeral, you could actually see the practicality of how things are done out there. They said they will keep the handouts and use them whenever they have to plan for the funeral. These sessions made a huge impact on transforming their mind set to manage their finances better.
Coronation Money Modular - I did 12 modules in different organizations that are around the community. At Ethafeni Day Care Centre, at Ikamva labantwana and lastly in Ithemba Labantu. These modules were an eye opener to the participants. They all did MFS before and by doing these modules it was an emphasis on change of mind set. All module made a huge difference in young people's lives. Budgeting, methods of savings and investing, scams and fraud and managing debt these modules prepared young people on what to expect in future. Most participants said these session will help them to make informed decisions and prioritize their needs other than their wants. It was amazing to see how much they realize that they are spending on their beliefs more. Boosting income module was a highlight because the realize that they do have skills and talents which they can turn into business. They also requested a business skills session because most of them are on work readiness program and they are being trained on plumbing, mechanics, baristas, chef and sewing.
On the 17th of April 2025, I trained a group of students at a private college in Umbilo, Durban. I trained them on young people and money module. they were very excited when planning their budgets as some of them are on a learnership programme and they are getting a stipend. Most of them promised to start looking at their spending and start budgeting. They all agreed that it's important to start saving at an early age. They also enjoyed the activities, which help to enhance the session and increase participation. The interesting part is that they attended with their facilitator who encouraged them to take the session seriously.
