Financial literacy is often approached as a classroom exercise – teaching people about budgeting, saving and credit management. However, FinMark Trust’s experience across multiple programmes shows that financial literacy is most effective when it moves beyond theory and becomes embedded in people’s everyday economic lives.
Across four initiatives – the Digitalising Income for Informal and Low-income Workers (TIPS), Community Digitalisation project, Informal Cross-Border Trade (ICBT) project and Generating Better Livelihoods for Grant Recipients Project (GBL) – different delivery approaches were tested with diverse target groups, including informal workers, township entrepreneurs, cross-border traders, and social grant recipients.
The experiences from these projects provide important insights into what works in financial literacy training, particularly when comparing in-person interventions, digital delivery models, and hybrid approaches.
The value of in-person learning and community engagement
Across all four projects, in-person engagement proved critical for building trust, contextual understanding, and behavioural change.
In the GBL project, financial literacy training is part of a broader livelihoods development model that supports unemployed youth and social grant recipients to transition from passive income support to active income generation. Rather than treating financial literacy as a standalone subject, the training is embedded in entrepreneurship development, job-readiness programmes, and cooperative formation.
This approach revealed that participants engage more actively when financial concepts are linked to immediate livelihood goals. For example, participants were more motivated to save when they had a clear objective, such as purchasing equipment for a small business. Our GBL Linkage Facilitators also conducted regular coaching visits and check-ins, reinforcing behaviours such as saving, budgeting, and record-keeping.
Similarly, the ICBT project, which primarily used a digital delivery mechanism, demonstrated the value of on-the-ground coaches, who played a critical role in explaining messages to participants, supporting app use, and maintaining participation.
Experiences in the Community Digitalisation project have shown the limitations of in-person learning. Long classroom-style sessions were often poorly attended because participants could not leave their businesses, jobs or household responsibilities for extended periods. Transport costs, childcare obligations, and competing priorities created further barriers to attendance.
These lessons suggest that in-person training works best when it is:
- Delivered through trusted community engagement
- Short, modular and flexible in format
- Supported by ongoing engagement rather than once-off workshops.
Experiential learning: the bridge between knowledge and behaviour
A recurring lesson across programmes is that people learn financial skills more effectively by doing rather than by listening.
In the ICBT project, traders used a digital financial diary to record their daily income and expenditure. The tool generated personalised analytics reports that showed traders' spending, profit, and business performance patterns. This experiential approach allowed participants to reflect on their financial behaviour, which made learning practical and relevant to their daily decisions.
Monthly analytics reports became a powerful incentive. Traders were motivated to continue recording their financial data because they could see tangible insights about their businesses and compare their performance with peers.
In the GBL project, experiential learning looked a little different. Participants put financial lessons into practice by forming savings groups (stokvels), keeping records for small enterprises, and setting savings goals linked to business investments. These practical activities linked financial literacy concepts to daily actions and helped participants translate knowledge into behaviour.
Across both projects, experiential learning proved more effective than traditional classroom instruction, especially when participants could immediately apply what they had learned.
Digital financial literacy: expanding reach but requiring support
Digital delivery models also opened new possibilities, especially for expanding access to training and reaching more people.
The Community Digitalisation project showed that mobile-based learning has the potential to increase participation. When financial literacy sessions were delivered through WhatsApp, participation grew and even attracted individuals outside the pilot communities. Mobile channels made it possible for entrepreneurs to access training without leaving their businesses.
Similarly, the ICBT project used short digital messages, infographics, and notifications to reinforce learning over time. These bite-sized messages helped introduce topics such as consumer protection, cybersecurity, business formalisation and digital financial services while maintaining ongoing engagement.
However, these projects also highlighted an important reality: digital tools alone are rarely sufficient. Many participants required initial support to use the digital platforms effectively, particularly where digital literacy levels were low. On-the-ground coaches played a crucial role in helping traders use the technology, interpret financial insights, and maintain participation.
In practice, digital tools work best when combined with human support structures.
When digital tools fail: lessons from the tipping economy
The TIPS project, which explored digital tipping solutions for informal service workers such as car guards and petrol attendants, revealed another important dimension of digital financial literacy.
While participants received onboarding and training on a digital payments app, adoption remained limited due to the platform’s complexity. Even where training was provided, a difficult user interface significantly reduced sustained usage.
This experience highlighted an important lesson: financial literacy cannot compensate for technology that is not fit for purpose. Digital tools must be intuitive and simple if users are expected to adopt them independently.
Another challenge was the nature of informal work. Workers in the tipping economy often work long hours for little money and cannot easily take time out for formal training sessions. As a result, a one-off detailed training session on using the digital payments app proved ineffective.
A new approach is being tested, with a simpler, more intuitive digital payment system for tipping. Facilitators will remain on-site for extended periods, allowing workers to experiment with the platform during their workday while receiving real-time support. The hope is that learning can then occur within the natural work environment rather than in formal training settings.
Structural constraints that limit financial behaviour change
While financial literacy can improve knowledge and behaviour, FinMark Trust’s programmes also revealed the structural realities that limit financial decision-making for low-income populations.
Project participants face significant economic pressures. Limited and irregular income, rising living costs, and household responsibilities often mean saving or long-term financial planning is difficult – even when participants understand its importance.
These findings reinforce an important principle: financial literacy interventions must be designed with an understanding of participants’ economic realities. Knowledge alone cannot overcome structural poverty or income instability
Key lessons for future financial literacy programmes
Across the TIPS, Community Digitalisation, ICBT and GBL initiatives, several cross-cutting lessons emerge:
- Financial literacy should be linked to real economic activities. Training is most effective when it connects directly to people’s jobs, businesses, or income-generating activities.
- Learning by doing drives real behavioural change. Practical tools, such as financial diaries, savings groups, and real-time platforms, help participants put financial concepts into practice immediately.
- Human support is essential. Coaches, facilitators and trusted community members play a critical role in reinforcing lessons, building confidence and creating trust.
- Digital tools expand access but must be simple and well supported. Mobile-based training and digital platforms can reach more people, but adoption depends on whether they are easy to use and offer ongoing support.
- Recognise and understand structural realities. Financial literacy programmes must consider the challenges of low and irregular income, and set realistic expectations around saving and financial planning.
Moving from financial literacy to financial capability
The experiences from these projects suggest that the ultimate goal should not simply be financial literacy, but financial capability – the ability to apply financial knowledge in real-life decision-making.
Achieving this requires programmes that combine practical tools, trusted human support, community engagement, and accessible digital solutions. When these elements come together, financial literacy training can move beyond information-sharing to support meaningful and sustained economic participation.
For organisations working to advance financial inclusion, the lesson is clear: effective financial literacy is not just about teaching people about money – it is about creating environments where they can practise and apply those skills every day.