Liberty Experience leads a discussion on financial literacy for refugees in Germany

The word “Refugee” is derived from the word, ‘refuge’, which means to hide. Refugees are individuals that have been forced to flee their home country to another country (host country). Most refugees are generally unwilling to return to their home countries because of the war, conflict, persecution, or targeted harassment they left behind. Developed countries and even developing countries around the world receive a very high number of refugees yearly. (UNHCR)

Refugees are a very vulnerable class of the population exposed to harassment, violence, crime, racism, bigotry, restricted access to healthcare or the justice system amongst others. The refugee population is people who are scared, terrified, and in new territory. They are often victims of exploitation at the hands of enforcement officials and citizens of the host country.

One major challenge faced by refugees is their integration into the financial world of their host country. Refugees, most times, are one the poorest among the population because they have to start from ground zero. The lack or low level of financial literacy among refugees often prevents improved financial well-being and poverty reduction.

To ensure successful integration into the host country’s financial world, refugees need to be educated about access to and understanding the different financial products available to them; also, how they can use the money they make in an efficient and sustainable manner.

The topic of financial literacy comprises different things such as the knowledge to manage household incomes, ability to make informed and smart financial decisions, skills needed to make sound financial investments, knowledge to properly appraise loan offers, and the skills to manage loan liabilities, ability to access risks and the behavior and capability to take on responsible financial liabilities, knowledge of what government and non-government bodies to turn to should their interests be violated while making financial transactions and, ability to set long term goals to mention a few.

In a bid to do our bit here at Liberty Experience, we partnered with Visit.org to educate and discuss the topic of financial literacy with some refugees in Germany. The attendees held a short introduction about basic money management. The difficulty in the financial and legal situation of refugees in Germany was also discussed at length. The beneficiaries also had the opportunity to ask questions regarding various financial topics and these questions were adequately answered. Beyond the topic of finance, our beneficiaries discussed their passion for music and raised questions relating to the topic. The workshop was a huge success.

If you and your team would like to participate in this workshop in the future, you can read more and register here: https://libertyexperience.org/social-workshop/

Moreover, as part of our goal to help migrants smoothly integrate into their host country, Liberty Experience runs an initiative that provides musically talented displaced migrants with platforms to showcase their talents and build their musical careers. All these help us drive positive social change. Through this initiative, we have helped many displaced migrants get basic life amenities and to contribute positively to their new communities. You can read more about this initiative here: https://libertyexperience.org/openstage/

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Become a donor: Our activities and projects at Liberty Experience provide safe spaces for displaced migrants to integrate into their new communities. These projects are mainly financed through donations and grants. Your donation of any amount goes a long way in making our projects possible.

Here is how you can donate: https://libertyexperience.org/donate/