Prepare children for economic hardships

From the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic that grossly left many family members without jobs or businesses, and the current hike in prices of essential goods and commodities, the country is facing an economic crisis.

This means that some parents are not able to afford their families’ well-being as they had earlier planned. There are already family budget adjustments as some regular commodities could be completely removed  from the menu until the economic situation stabilises.

Occasionally our children may not be able to understand that the situation is very tight and it has affected most of the essential items.

Some children may be bold enough to ask why you no longer do some things as you used to do before. And it’s very important here, to tell the truth to your children and let them understand that it’s not you alone going through this, but it’s a general problem affecting other families and the nation at large.

Please, avoid lying to your children and playing around their minds yet this is beyond your own control.
Actually you don’t need to wait for your children to ask you, “Daddy, what is not happening?” It is better you sit them down and explain the current occurrences and how this could bring some changes in the family’s expected welfare.

Children need to understand why you are unable to fulfill all their needs as usual. You may have lost a job for some time and you no longer earn. You may be spending too much on the treatment of a family member and this has drained your finances, among others.

You can use this opportunity to teach them about planning and budgeting or adjustment of both. They also need to learn how to prepare to overcome hardships in life with resilience. For instance, when a child is at school and their pocket money is depleted in the middle of the term, yet you don’t have money to send to them immediately, must the world come to a standstill and their academics destabilised? How can they cope with such a situation without affecting their academic performance? Can our children learn to be patient in situations that are beyond their control as well?

We can prepare them for anything and everything so that in case the situation is tougher than now and our savings or investments have been affected and you are not in position to provide all their requirements, they will not only understand but appreciate how you are holding up.
It’s important for children to know that as a parent, you are always concerned about them and you care.

That you always prioritise their needs first, though that does not have to put other things like running family businesses on halt. When your children are well guided on what is happening and how to handle it, they get to know that you understand their fears and feelings; they will appreciate the situation, seek to be part of the solutions, stand to pray for you, and be an encouragement as well.

Teach children to live within their means. If you cannot afford a certain life, they need to know that they can adjust accordingly and manage what they can afford at that time. Discuss together alternative ways of survival. If one finishes school and there are no jobs, ask them what else they can afford to do to earn a living.

Let them learn how to think outside the box and the effective use of multiple financing mechanisms. They can turn these challenging times into opportunities for real growth and change in life.

Ask them to learn how to eliminate unnecessary expenses and grow their monthly incomes, how to cut off some daily/monthly bills, and develop a commitment to financial discipline. They can learn about saving even the little they have and invest it. Associate them with people who have made it in life and let a child ask them to share their survival and resilience skills. Know how they have made it in businesses, how they have succeeded at the workplace, and what he/she too can do to be successful.

Dickson Tumuramye, Child advocate
tumudickson@gmailcom