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| Central
Bank Governor Prof Njuguna Ndung'u |
The financial education and consumer protection partnership
(FEPP) met at Crown Plaza Hotel on the 18th of March 2010
to deliberate on how to take the initiative to enhance consumer
financial capability for the financial sector forward. The
meeting was led by Prof. Njuguna Ndung'u, the Governor of
the central bank of Kenya who is also the FEPP Champion. In
his speech, Prof. Ndungu said that it is imperative for the
financial sector to appreciate the reasons why consumers are
challenged in the course of accessing financial services and
that the sector must find ways to engage the consumer so that
their services are more transparent.
Consumers need to be educated so that they know their rights
as well as responsibilities and that this will ensure that
the industry becomes robust and inclusive. He stated yet again
that financial education should not be targeted only at the
poor, Professionals would also need the information.Industry
must take steps to protect consumers and that the main reason
for regulating the financial sector is to secure consumers
interest, he concluded. The partnership agreed on some quick
steps to embrace consumer protection for the financial services
sector.
Interested in Consumer Protection for Financial
Services in Kenya? Look out for the final report from the
diagnositic study being undertaken in this area that will
be circulated in May 2010. View the findings from the preliminary
report on Consumer Protection here: Consumer
Protection Diagnostic Study Report
The financial education and consumer protection partnership
commissioned 4 pilot projects which will reach consumers nationally
to enhance their financial capability. Four channels for communicating
messages on how to earn, save, invest, take on credit and
secure your finances, will be tested for their effectiveness
in altering consumers behaviour. The pilot projects are: Makutano
Junction an edutainment series being aired every Saturday
at 7:40pm on Citizen TV; Faulu Kenya a newly licensed Deposit
taking Microfinance Institution engages consumers in Nyanza
and Coast; The Aflatoun children's curriculum will be tested
in 142 schools in Kisumu region by Plan Kenya and Kenyatta
University students are turned into financial education trainers
of youth across Kenya by Equity Bank. View these projects
here:
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