Prof. Muftau Ijaiya of the Department of Finance, University of Ilorin, says Nigeria is ranked 109th on the Global Financial Literacy ranking.
Ijaiya stated this in Ilorin at the 245th Inaugural Lecture of the University entitled: “Money Matters in All Matters”.
He described financial literacy as the ability to understand and effectively use financial skills, including personal financial management, budgeting and investing.
“When you are financially literate, you have the foundation of a relationship with money and it is a lifelong journey of learning,” he said.
The don observed that the poor management of Nigeria’s financial resources could partly be linked to low financial literacy level in the country.
The financial expert stated that the United States ranked 14th in global financial literacy ranking.
Ijaiya said the US has continued to improve on the global ranking through establishment of Financial Literacy and Education and improved allocation to public schools.
According to him, financial literacy report from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) shows that most Nigerians require training and information in financing concepts such as long-term financial planning, budgeting finance products and services among others.
“Millions are looking for ways to achieve financial independence and create wealth for themselves. Therefore for the country to continue to have a continuous process of acquiring and having more people with requisite financial literacy, education, skills and experiences were important.
“These experiences are crucial for economic and social development. This is why government should increase budgetary allocation for the education sector at levels.
“The current budgetary allocation to the education sector is too low and needed to be increased,” he said.
Ijaiya said financial literacy would assist people to spend their resources wisely because it impacts directly on expenses, wealth creation and the economy at large.
He called on the government to increase its spending in the agricultural sector to maintain infrastructure and institutions critical to agricultural output.
Ijaiya pointed out that this would complement with the stable macroeconomics policies such as inflation, internal and external debt and exchange rate management.
“Government should support informal microfinance activities, especially the savings and credits clubs with cash and training in the area of continuity, financial reporting and default,” he said.
