Financial specialist tips consumers on spending
Old Mutual Malawi plc financial education specialist Benard Chiluzi has urged consumers to spend within their means and on necessities to avoid falling into the debt trap.
In an interview, he said while the end of the month is when money problems usually start, it is important to take stock of one’s financial problems to avoid spending beyond means.
He said: “The uncomfortable truth will probably be that your actions caused the flood. A lot of Malawians are payday millionaires and that’s where money problems usually start.
“When it is month end, it is like a person cycling down the steep hill, you do not need a lot of effort. However, every steep slope can suddenly become difficult to navigate when situations change. You need to prepare yourself in case you slope up the hill. The only way to change is to understand that if you wish to do great things tomorrow, you must address today’s issues and take the steps needed to make them yesterday’s problems.”
To avoid falling into the debt trap, Chiluzi said there is need to start living in one’s lane and stop comparing one’s life with other people’s.
Meanwhile, the cost of living has been on the rise with Centre for Social Concern (CfSC) figures showing that the cost of living in Malawi’s four cities, Lilongwe, Zomba, Blantyre and Mzuzu, shot up by an average 5.45 percent to K255 593 last month.
The minimum wage has, however, remained at K50 000.
On the other hand, the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine has created global supply chain disruptions, resulting in a rise in global commodity prices, thereby contributing to inflation
Among others, soybean oil increased by 8.6 percent to $1,596.0 per metric tonne (MT) in February from $1 470 per MT during the same period in January 2022, according to Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) figures.
On the domestic market, cooking oil prices have increased from an average of K2 500 to K6 500 per two litres.
During the review period, wheat prices averaged $390.5 per MT, up from $374.20 per MT in the previous month, which has pushed up prices of wheat products such as bread from an average of K500 a loaf in January this year to K1 000.
On the other hand, fertiliser prices have been on the rise, with retail prices increasing by over 90 percent from K22 042 for a 50 kilogramme (kg) bag in August 2020, to an average of K50 000.
CfSC programme officer for economic governance Bernard Mphepo said in an interview most Malawians are hardly surviving as incomes are not reflecting the living costs.
“Government should be serious about putting in place policies to protect the welfare of Malawians,” he said.
