Kenyan women spend big on food and personal care

A woman shops for milk a supermarket in Nyeri in June this year. A new survey shows Kenyan women spent the biggest proportion of their money on food. FILE  NATION MEDIA GROUP

By WANGUI MAINA,

IN SUMMARY
Survey shows the majority invest as much money in beauty and image boosting products as they do on
school fees for their children.
The survey also found that 64 per cent of women would buy a house or land if they had the money but only four per cent see the stock market as a viable investment option.
The survey talked to 2,069 women across the country aged between 25 and 55 years.
It was meant to identify areas where women put themselves at financial risk, to create awareness to problems and to allow women protect themselves.
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Kenyan women spend as much on schools fees as on personal care and prefer putting money in real estate, according to a pioneer survey on their spending habits.

The survey done by Consumer Insight for global payment solutions firm Visa shows that 64 per cent of women would buy a house or land if they had the money but only four per cent see the stock market as a viable investment option.

The survey also found that less than 30 per cent have insured their real estate investments, a trend that reflects the general attitude of the Kenyan population towards insurance.

“We want the report to identify areas where women are putting themselves at financial risk. This brings about an awareness of the problems and allows women to protect themselves accordingly,” said Visa country manager for Southern and East Africa, Jabu Basopo.

The survey talked to 2,069 women across the country aged between 25 and 55 years.

Mr Basopo said women increasingly had their hands on the purse strings, even for traditional ‘male’ purchases, such as cars where they had a greater say.

The survey looked at how Kenyan women approach money, how they spend it and the major areas of concern in a bid to help increase financial literacy among the fairer sex.

The survey carried out in June was meant to identify areas where women put themselves at financial risk, to create awareness to problems and to allow women protect themselves.

One of the risks that emerged was that majority of the women surveyed, 51 per cent, do not seek financial advice. When they did, they relied on friends and family with only 31 per cent relying on the bank. The rest either consulted a financial consultant, insurance company and stockbroker.

(READ: Kenyans need to scale up personal finance skills)

Analysts said women take comfort in securing their future, which mainly influences how money is spent and invested.

Isaac Maaluki, a personal finance and investment expert, said women are more patient and though they might not have large sums of money to save, compared to men, they are in no hurry to see returns.

“Men are more focused on what they can do today to make money on the immediate. Most of women will splurge after they have completed their investments,” said Mr Maluki, adding that women mainly take comfort in groups and take less risks than men.

The Visa report shows 19 per cent of a woman’s wallet went to buying food with education and school fees coming in second at 12 per cent, the same level as personal care, clothes and leisure.

“Open air markets lead as preferred purchase points for clothes. Specialty shops, however, are preferred by high income earners,” the report said.