Women and financial literacy

Financial literacy is necessary for everyone with gender no bar. However, the sad part is women lag behind in financial literacy big time.

This is an issue less addressed probably either most of us shy away admitting it and above all the male population is not aware of it all. A large segment of women, not only in India but abroad as well avoids dealing with financial/ banking jargon and tasks.

Cash flow, debit, credit, insurance, loans, rate of interest, savings … too much to handle?

As banks and finance is all about our money, in order to stay safe and avoid any blunder we ask the male members to deal a large part of it. A recent literacy study conducted by the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center checked the degree of knowledge among men and women about the stock market, inflation and interest rates. The results were really disappointing and bothersome. The percentage of men was 16 percent higher than the women participated in the survey.

This isn’t a matter of negligence rather a major setback on terms of progression of the globe. Among various kinds of gender gaps, this is another major kind of gap mostly women deal, nation / continents no bar. The incompetence in financial literacy makes the women face darn repercussions in their daily life. They find themselves in deep water the moment they fall under situations that barge them to deal with all of all alone. These circumstances also lead to further worse situation like crossing of deadlines, defaulting the loans, dealing with taxes and many more.

This issue needs attention and each one us must take initiatives to improvise the trajectory of financial literacy in women. There are several initiatives coming up lately that are imparting financial literacy and bridging the gap worldwide. Some of such organizations serving for this noble deed are – The Women’s Institute for Financial Education (WIFE), The Financial Literacy Organization for Women and Girls (FLOW), Women’s Institute for a Secure Retirement (WISER) and The Financial Women’s Association to name a few.

The literate women can take the aid of the free online resources available on finance. They give you a clear picture of the entire finance scenario – of things you do not understand related to your bank account. Enroll yourself into financial literacy programs – a step that will empower you more than ever before. These programs help women to sharpen their basic banking, investing and saving skills.

A proper financial literacy will save you from all the tough times in life, whether you are just a housewife or a working woman. Having the knowledge of financial jargon is always something you will never ever regret.