By Tshego Bokaba, Lead: Momentum Group Foundation
After a month of grafting – and what seems like a lifetime of waiting – your first salary finally hits your bank account. Of course, everyone from your bestie to your gogo has an opinion on what you should do. You should save! Invest! Buy that handbag! Think about retirement! Treat the squad to a night out! Meanwhile, you’re just trying to pay the bills and enjoy your life. No one has ever really shown you how to make sense of it all.
We expect young women to enter adulthood knowing how money works, as though financial confidence simply arrives with age. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t. Many were never taught how to manage money at school or university, and money may not have been openly discussed at home. Then adulthood arrives, bringing contracts to understand, scams to spot and decisions to make that could affect their finances for years.
Financial confidence needs to be built early
Financial confidence has to be learned, and the earlier that happens, the better. At home, something as simple as giving a child an allowance can introduce the reality of making choices with limited money. Schools should make practical financial education part of learning, while universities and technical and vocational education and training colleges need to prepare students for the realities of earning an income. That education also needs to continue as circumstances change, because the financial decisions we face change with them.
Financial institutions and corporates have a particular responsibility because they have the expertise and resources to make financial education accessible. Education also needs to go beyond explaining products. Young people need practical knowledge that helps them make informed decisions, from understanding how saving works to knowing what they are agreeing to before signing a contract. Employers have a role to play too, particularly as young people begin earning and taking greater responsibility for their finances.
Having positive role models and access to trusted financial advice helps young women turn what they have learned into decisions they can act on.
Knowing about money isn’t enough
Without that foundation, money can easily start dictating the choices young women make. Add in social media’s constant images of what success supposedly looks like, and it’s easy to start spending money to keep up appearances. From there, debt can quickly become the price of keeping up. Financial education gives young women something more valuable: the ability to decide what matters to them and direct their money accordingly.
Financial confidence develops when young women put that knowledge into practice. At Momentum Group Foundation, our Motheo Financial Dialogues programme is designed around that principle. After completing the training, participants complete practical assignments, while independent evaluations before and after the programme measure their knowledge. And it works – we see young people leave feeling more empowered to make financial decisions and with a clearer understanding of how their choices today will affect their future financial wellbeing.
Worth is more than wealth
This year’s Momentum She Owns Her Success message makes it clear: Her success has a number. The aim of the 2026 campaign is to help women understand their finances, define their money milestones, and build their personal net worth. And worth means looking beyond what money can buy today and thinking about the life you want to build over time. It’s not always easy – we all love a little treat! – but starting to save or invest from your first pay cheque gives you an advantage that becomes more valuable as the years pass. Doing so early also gives your money time to grow, helping you build towards long-term independence.
Every young woman can learn to take control of her finances. Asking questions is part of it, just as much as learning how to save or invest. Speaking to a financial adviser early can help young women structure their finances around where they want to go, rather than simply reacting to where they are today.
The life you want is worth planning for. Financial confidence starts when we stop expecting young women to simply have it, and start giving them the knowledge and opportunities to build it.
