Empowering youth: the key to financial freedom in South Africa

Financial freedom is often portrayed as a destination reached through budgeting apps, savings goals, and perfect credit scores. But for many young South Africans navigating a tough economic landscape, the real journey begins with something less visible but far more powerful: mindset.

While unemployment, rising debt, and limited access to quality financial education remain systemic barriers, a growing number of financial educators believe that internal beliefs about money are just as critical. Limiting thoughts such as “I’m too broke to save,” or “I’ll be better with money when I earn more,” keep young people locked in cycles of short-term thinking and missed opportunity.

Youth Day reminds us of the power young people have to influence change. In the same way that past generations challenged political systems, today’s youth must challenge the limiting beliefs that hold them back financially.

A shift in mindset can start small. Saving just R10 a week, building awareness around spending, or learning a financial term can change not only a bank balance but also a young person’s confidence. Money is emotional, and until we deal with how we think and feel about it, we won’t manage it well, no matter how much we earn.

According to Financial Rewire, a global financial literacy platform for kids and teens, a new approach is gaining traction through a framework designed to encourage lasting behavioural change. In a series of engagements with youth across both urban and rural areas, the REWIRE method is being implemented as a practical mindset tool.

The Financial Rewire ethos encourages young people to reflect on early money habits, learn through simple tools, set long-term goals, build confidence as a money manager, create consistent habits like saving, and uplift peers through honest financial conversations.

We need to normalise talking about money in youth spaces, not just as a stressor, but as something that can be managed and mastered. When we stop treating money as a mystery or a source of shame, we give young people the tools to build real freedom.

Changing your financial future isn’t about having all the answers today, it’s about taking small, meaningful steps toward better money choices and a more empowered mindset. As South African youth continue to rise against the odds, rethinking their relationship with money may be one of the most revolutionary acts of all.

Empowering young people with financial knowledge and confidence has a ripple effect that extends beyond individual well-being. Financially informed youth are better positioned to support their families, contribute to local economies, and make informed choices about education, employment, and entrepreneurship.

‘In a country where youth carries the potential to reshape the future, building a financially literate generation is not just a personal goal, it's a national imperative.

* Gopichand is the risk director at Atlas Finance.

PERSONAL FINANCE