A Four-Day campaign aimed at sensitising Tanzanians on financial services will be held in Dar es Salaam later on this year, the event organisers have said.

The free open air event organised jointly by Nuebrand Events Limited, the Centre for Microfinance Enterprises Development (CEMiDE), Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPSF), Tanzania Consumer Advocacy Society (TCAS) and Tanzania Microfinance Association (TAMFI), will begin on October 10, this year.

Speaking to members of the press yesterday in Dar es Salaam, Nuebrand Managing Director Aziz Omary, said this year’s campaign dubbed, ‘Nuebrand Financial and Investment Services Week 2012 is informed by various findings an indication that a sizable number of our population is excluded form formal financial services even in urban areas such as Dar es Salaam.

He said the campaign from a FinScope 2009 study as well as the Consumer International 2011 baseline study on financial literacy, is a result of lack of knowledge – the lack of ‘know-how’.
Prior to the Mnazi Mmoja open-air fair, the campaign will run on radio and road shows for two weeks and in both events, financial education will be delivered.

“The key objective, which is also the campaign theme ‘Financial Inclusion Through Financial Literacy’, is aimed to enable financial inclusion through education, that will enable individuals to be financially capable, have knowledge, skills and confidence as well as be aware of available financial opportunities,” he said.

He said the event will enable them to know where to seek help and make informed choices and take effective action to better their financial wellbeing.
Invited SMEs entrepreneurs will be offered business skills and development training, including business plan formulating skills, understanding of entrepreneurship as well as negotiation skills.

Invited participants include Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE), BRELA, Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) and Export Processing Zones Authority (EPZA) and Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS).

Leading private sector players such Vodacom will have a special training and awareness for women about the M-PESA Women Empowerment Initiative (MWEI), a campaign to empower women entrepreneurs.

According to him evident adverse effects of financial illiteracy include the massive rise in consumers’ indebtedness in many countries, low level of savings; misselling of particular complex products, under coverage of risks with severe consequences, higher costs for disadvantaged groups and lack of trust in financial institutions.

He noted that expected benefits of the campaign are to change attitudes to translate knowledge into behaviour, that is, offering a “win-win” situation for interested parties (consumers benefiting from use of safe and affordable financial products while service providers will benefit from increased uptake of services).