Investment analyst and Managing Director of EDC Investment, Paul Kofi Mante has advised workers to cultivate a savings habit by putting away about 20 percent of their income into an investment.
He explained that cultivating a savings habit will not only sustain workers in difficult times but will also make workers financially independent.
Speaking on the Citi Breakfast Show as part of the on-air series of the Citi Business Festival, Mr. Mante stated that workers who rely only on their salaries without savings become worse off in the future.
“If you are not careful you will be working, but all you will be doing is to be mobilizing money and redistributing it. If you want to save and invest, then the basic thing I want to discuss is that you need to learn to pay yourself at the end of every month”
Mr. Mante stated that earning a substantial income during a person’s working life is not a guarantee that one will retire with lots of money.
He advised that there must be a deliberate effort to save a minimum of 20 percent of monthly income to retire with a substantial amount of money which has been put into a good investment.
Making some recommendations on expenses that must be managed to create room for savings, Mr. Mante advised workers to check their electricity consumption and transportation cost.
He stated for a example that managing the consumption of electricity is a critical move that must be taken seriously by all families,
“Watch utilities, the way we spend on electricity, the way we spend on water, telephone bills. As we speak now this morning[9:43am] lights are still on in some homes but you don’t need the light on to see this morning”
Mr. Mante observed that workers must pay attention to how much of their income goes into transportation cost.
“The cars we drive, the engine capacity matters. You may be driving a 4.5 litre engine car when you don’t need a 4.5 litre engine car.