Tradition meets new ideas

SAVING: YOUNG USE THEM FOR PROPERTY, HOLIDAYS, WEDDINGS AND OTHER INVESTMENTS

- Ina Opperman

South Africans seem to have a unique way of doing just about anything and when it comes to money matters, the same applies.

South Africans are not famous for their savings culture, but when South Africans do save, many make it a stokvel.

While stokvels are a longstanding tradition in South African communities, they were only formalised during the late 1980s.

For Rapule Mahlangu, head of associations and affinity groups at Metropolitan, stokvels are an ingrained part of South African history, not only because they provide communities with a sense of social cohesion, but because they provide people with an effective way of saving money.

"These kinds of informal schemes play a vital role in promoting important national objectives such as financial inclusion or bringing more people into the fold of economically active citizens.

"The fascinating thing is that the traditional structure of stokvels has remained relatively unchanged over the years.