Money under control: financial literacy training for rural population of Kazakhstan

As a part of Fingramota.kz project, the representatives of the Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (hereinafter referred to as the Agency) together with Asian Credit Fund (hereinafter referred to as ACF) have completed a series of the training sessions for the residents of remote regions of Turkestan, Almaty, Zhetysu, Abay, Akmola, Karaganda, Kyzylorda, Zhambyl, East Kazakhstan regions of the Republic of Kazakhstan
The training sessions which took place from 12 June to 5 October 2023 in 26 offices of ACF were attended by 1080 trainees from various segments of the population and with different levels of income.

The speakers invited from the departments of the regional representative offices of the Agency in the cities of Saryagash, Kyzylorda, Shymkent, Taraz, Taldykorgan, Semey, Karaganda and Almaty told about the work carried out by the financial regulator to protect the rights of the consumers of the financial services aimed at improving financial literacy of the population, countering fraud and pyramid schemes. The trainees have received the information on common types and methods of fraud, signs of the pyramid schemes, and learnt how to recognize them and protect themselves and their relatives. The Agency’s representatives also answered the questions of the trainees on settling the overdue debts of the citizens.
The training events were attended by the representatives of the Unified Accumulative Pension Fund who spoke about the pension system of Kazakhstan.
One of the key aspects of these trainings was budget management training. The employees of Asian Credit Fund taught the trainees how to prioritize, control the expenses and plan for future expenditures so that the budgeting skills become essential for financial sustainability of each family. In addition, ACF spoke about various savings methods that the villagers can use in their lives, which will not only bring short-term benefits, but also build a foundation for future opportunities and development. The trainees highly appreciated the trainings and the information received. 96% noted the importance of the chosen topics, 92% noted that despite their life experience they learnt a lot of new things for themselves, 98% expressed their desire to attend ACF trainings next year.

ACF non-financial trainings are a vivid example of how continuous learning and practical skills can change life for the better. ACF plans to continue such projects in the future so that more people can access such valuable information and improve their financial well-being.