FINANCIAL LITERACY
FINANCIAL LITERACY
According to[CITATION Man09 \l 1033 ], the term "financial literacy" generally refers to the ability of consumers to make financial decisions in the short or long term for their best interests. Low levels of financial literacy have been blamed, in part, for poor mortgage made by many Americans of limited means which contributed to the recent meltdown in the US and worldwide banking systems. In addition, the lack of financial literacy has probably contributed to low or even negative rates of personal savings. As stated by[ CITATION Fik17 \l 1033 ] Financial literacy is considered a very useful tool for seeing how people deal with financial problems. If people have confidence in financial literacy, they can better manage financial problems. Governments pay attention to the financial literacy of their people in order to formulate policies and solve the financial problems of society. In addition, using information on financial literacy from different countries, comparison can be made. Countries can learn from different countries if the levels of financial literacy between these countries are similar. In addition, financial literacy levels can be used as benchmarks for listing countries in ascending or descending order. Measuring financial literacy of people can also help the governments to create better retirement plans. Lusardi and Mitchell studies this subject. On their review, the evident reveals that many households are unfamiliar with even the most basic economic concepts needed to make saving and investment decisions. Such financial illiteracy is widespread: the young and older people in the United States and other countries appear woefully under-informed about basic financial concepts, with serious implications for saving, retirement planning, mortgages, and other decisions. In response, governments and several nonprofit organizations have undertaken initiatives to enhance financial literacy.