Beneficiaries in the first batch of the Federal Government’s N30,000 artisans’ grant have started receiving their grants.

This was disclosed by the Presidency via the FG’s Twitter handle on Saturday.

It tweeted, “The first batch of beneficiaries of the N30,000 artisans grant, a component of @NigeriaGov’s @SurvivalFund_ng, have started receiving their grants.

“Eligible beneficiaries are artisans and self-employed individuals. Each State will have 9,000 beneficiaries.”

UPDATE: The first batch of beneficiaries of the N30,000 artisans grant, a component of @NigeriaGov’s @SurvivalFund_ng, have started receiving their grants. Eligible beneficiaries are artisans and self-employed individuals. Each State will have 9,000 beneficiaries.

— Presidency Nigeria (@NGRPresident) October 31, 2020

Details soon …

With the current economic climate, running into debt seems unavoidable for many individuals and organizations. Individuals, as well as businesses, are faced with daunting economic challenges which the pandemic has triggered.

It is important to note that staying out of debt requires cultivating an effective financial management approach.

It involves taking proactive steps towards managing money and time to limit debt and reduce financial worries. With the change in the economy, if sound and diligent financial efforts are placed in motion, it is possible to prevent accumulating debts.

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Here are some ways to limit debt amid the present economic challenges:

1. Set Spending Limits

• It is easy to run into debt if spending habits are not placed in check. The increasing use of technology in the business sphere has made goods and services readily available.
• This means that purchasing desirable goods and services has been made effortless which plays a major role in increasing spending.
• Thus, setting spending limits will give you knowledge of how to utilize your finances. It will help you to know what you can afford within the range of your income.

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2. Evaluate your Income and Expenses

• Having a sound knowledge of how much comes in and what it should be used for will enable you to spend your money wisely.
• Analyzing your income and your needs will help you to develop a befitting spending strategy that covers your expenses.
• Know the nature and demands of the expenses you make. When your needs are properly budgeted for, the chances of getting into debt to settle unplanned expenses will be limited.

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3. Contentment is Important

• If you want to limit debt, you need to decipher the important things your income should be spent on and stick to it.
• Being content helps you aim for necessities. It gives you an understanding of your needs and wants, thus limiting the way you spend on unnecessary yearnings or desires.
• With the present challenges, contentment is required to exercise control over your finances.

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4. Acquire Financial Knowledge

• Money management is a skill that needs to be sharpened to suit different economic climates.
• Financial literacy is required to make productive use of your finances. It is important to read books on finances or take courses on financial management.
• This habit will help to expand your knowledge on different concepts of money management which can be applied to your finances.

5. Be Realistic with Your Spending

• It is natural to desire things. The society is constantly portraying new products and services daily which give people the impression that they need to buy the latest products to stay in vogue.
• Many people go beyond their means to achieve this desire which eventually accrues unimaginable debts in the end.
• To avoid getting into debt, you need to be realistic with your spending. Analyze the essential things you need and check if you need to trim your budget to stay on track.

6. Get Extra Gigs

• If spending less is not keeping you out of debt, you need to try earning more to meet your needs. Additional income can meet more financial demands.
• Try to engage in activities that can earn you extra income. This will limit the tendency of accruing debts to foot your bills.

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7. Have a Saving Plan

• One of the ways to limit the chances of running into debt is to make provision for unexpected expenses.
• The present economic situation poses a challenge to individuals and businesses. Many occurrences take place unexpectedly.
• In as much as having a budget is important, some pressing needs arise outside the budget that might throw you off guard if allocations are not made for such occurrences. Allocate your income to cover your saving plan.

Limiting debts requires a lot of self-discipline. It involves recognizing and curtailing the habits that are capable of getting you into debt. This means cultivating the habits of intentional and planned spending, as well as improved earning power.

The advent of the cashless policy in Nigeria came as both a gift and a curse. On the plus side, one does not need to lug bags of cash around, especially for interstate transactions—just get depositors to transfer funds to your account, and you in turn, transfer to your business partners.

The policy has also made banks more innovative by creating various payment platforms that don’t need physical cash. Each bank has a robust mobile banking app where customers can transfer funds, subscribe for cable TV, book flights, buy airtime, etc., without entering a banking hall. For those without smart phones, the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) option is there. Even ATM cards have been upgraded to do more than pay cash. What a time to be alive!

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However, with these strides in innovation, come the downsides—robbers have adapted with the times by moving from the highway and taking their “trade” online. The  various options open to customers for processing transactions can also be manipulated by thieves to defraud account holders of their hard-earned funds.

Hopefully, after reading this article, readers would be better armed to protect their funds from these “online robbers.”

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1. Do not divulge sensitive account details to unknown callers

As surprising as it seems, many people still fall prey to this trick, despite several warnings. There have been many instances of people admitting that they received calls from unknown callers, who claim to be staff of various banks. They are told that their accounts require some form of upgrade\corrections, and to do this, information like ATM card PINs and PANs, and details of messages sent to the account owners’ phones are needed. The “bank staff” then creates mobile banking apps tied to the bank accounts of the unsuspecting owners, and from there, all funds are transferred to several unknown recipients.

READ: Banks beware: Small challenger banks are introducing disruptive account setup options 

2. Protect card details

As already stated, ATM cards are not just used for cash withdrawals now—they can also be used for funds transfers, bills payments, online transactions, etc. this means that one does not necessarily need the physical presence of their card to process some transactions. With knowledge of the card Primary Account Number (PAN), which are the 16 digits displayed on the card’s surface, the Personal Identification Number (PIN), and Card Verification Value (CVV) number, displayed on the back of the card, funds can be moved from one’s account.

It is therefore important to protect these details, especially when using the card in public places like ATM lobbies, and POS machines. You should be equally careful not to call out such details, if absolutely necessary, within earshot of people.

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3. Always keep your phone safe

Imagine mourning the loss of your phone, then having the added heartache of losing the funds in your bank account(s).

The value of a phone goes beyond its price, these days. It contains private valued information of its owner, among which are bank account details; it also contains the SIM through which transaction alerts are received. The SIM makes it possible to process USSD transactions.

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There have been instances where phones were given to repairmen, only for the owners to realise later that funds had been transferred from their accounts via USSD to unknown beneficiaries. Even relatives have been known to secretly steal funds from accounts, just by handling the owner’s phones.

Always keep your phone locked, and know where it is at all times.

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4. Pay attention to transaction alerts

It is very easy to assume that all is well with one’s account, and not bother with checking transaction alerts. After all, it is what you withdrew that must have left the account, right? Wrong!

As explained above, funds could have left your account without your authorisation. So pay attention to your transaction alerts, especially the balances, and quickly investigate any transaction that was not initiated with your permission—the earlier the better, for quick resolution with your bank.

Also note that the absence of alerts despite transactions could also be a red flag, as the SIM could have been swapped, giving fraudsters a free hand to run your account.

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5. Know the USSD code for instant account deactivation

Imagine the horror of receiving alerts showing that your account is being continuously debited as you helplessly watch it happen, especially during over weekend when banks are closed.

This doesn’t need to happen. Right from the first debit, you should be able to take action and deactivate your account to prevent further debits. This is why it is important to know the emergency code of each bank where your funds are kept. For example, with Zenith Bank, any phone can be used to enter USSD code *966*911#, provide your account number, and the number used to receive alerts, and the account gets instantly deactivated. After this, you can take your time to investigate the stolen money, instead of frantically running around to stop further debits.

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It is also important to know the various ways to reach your bank during emergencies—get their customer care lines from their websites, and if they have chatbots, engage them; also know their email addresses. Getting your account officer’s number too is useful.

Conclusion

Apparently, with the ability to carry out transactions from the comfort of your homes, comes the responsibility of safeguarding your money (to an extent). These tips should make it easier to do so.

However, in a case where the money has already been stolen, contact your bank as soon as possible for investigation and possible recovery.