The University of Ghana Business School and its partners including the Improving Financial Awareness and Financial Movement in Ghana has launched the month of April as the financial literacy month.

The move seeks to raise awareness about the importance of financial literacy education and empower an individual to make informed and effective financial decisions.

Speaking at the lunch to dedicate the month of April as financial literacy and awareness creation, Head of Financial Stability at the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Joseph France said the high rate of financial illiteracy in Ghana largely contributes to the increased number of financial fraud in the country.

“The general literacy rate of the country as per the UNESCO report on literacy of adult population in emerging countries which showed an increase from 71.5% in 2010 to 79.04% in 2018 has unfortunately not translated into the improvement of the financial literacy rate in Ghana. The effect has been the increased number of victims of financial fraud, loss of funds and properties and increased number of complaints from the general public,” he noted.

Engaging Joy business on the sidelines of the launch, Dean of the University of Ghana Business School Prof. Justice Bawole indicated that the lack of financial literacy contributes to the high percent of non-performing loans.

However Prof. Bawole believes intensifying education on financial awareness is the way to go.

“If you were going for a loan to do business and you are being offered 30% or more as the interest rate, that means you’re going to fail. But of course, the financial institution that is giving you the money is looking to collect their interest and move on. So that leads to more non-performing loans.”

“So we’ve declared the month of April as financial literacy month and we believe it will help us reach a lot of people on how to manage their personal finances,” he stated.

Chief Executive of the Ghana Association of Bankers, John Awuah stated that banks must work together and collaborate on different levels to ensure financial inclusion.

“If we work together, cooperate and coordinate our effort, that’s when we are better able to bring along our actors and other market participants in this financial inclusion agenda. Particularly, improving financial awareness and literacy is of prime importance to banks,” he added.

A series of events have been lined up by the University of Ghana Business School with participation of industry players to observe the financial literacy and awareness month.