Business News of Wednesday, 29 October 2014 reported findings from a survey commissioned by Barclays Africa among some 7,052 people in 11 countries on the continent of Africa which have indicated that in order to prosper, Africans need to achieve financial freedom now and in 10 years’ time.The 2014 Barclays Africa Prosper Report which captured what ‘prosper’ means to Africans, evolved from an online survey which investigated the views of respondents from;
Data collection started from April 14, 2014 to August 8, 2014.
One of the most important findings of the survey showed a high-level of savings and investment. As many as 49 percent shows that many people invest or save an extra US$100 if they had it, 14.7 percent would use it for education and skills-related expenses and 13.2 percent would use it to pay off their debt. This indicates good savings intentions and a readiness to make sacrifices for education and training as a strategy for prosperity.
Barriers to prosperity
The three major obstacles to financial prosperity reported by survey participants include;
- Lack of finance (68 percent)
- Lack of opportunity (50 percent)
- Lack of financial advice (26.2 percent).
Seeking advice
Overall, 48 percent of respondents indicated that they would first consult a bank for advice on how to prosper financially, followed by a family member and the internet (both at 10 percent).
Asked how a bank could help them achieve financial prosperity, most of the respondents said that banks should clearly explain their savings (56 percent) and loan (34 percent) options and develop products to create financial security for themselves and their families (41 percent).
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