Survey: Half of Czechs financially literate but over two-thirds financially responsible
The level of financial literacy of Czechs corresponds to the average of OECD countries, suggests an international survey cited by Czech Television. Some 48 percent of Czechs boast high financial knowledge, the study found.
Some 69 percent of Czechs behave responsibly when it comes to financial matters. That is a marked increase on the 37 percent recorded in the last such OECD survey, conducted in 2015.
Those with low educational attainment and young people tend to have lower levels of financial literacy and to behave more irresponsibly when it comes to money matters.
According to the study, Czechs, together with Austrians, are among the nations that save the most to make purchases at a future date. However, Czechs have a relatively strong aversion to taking out loans and are less likely to do any kind of financial planning.
Some 57 percent of Czech households do not set a household budget, the OECD report cited by Czech Television found. At the same time, almost two in three households in this country do set aside reserves in case of a decline in income.
The survey indicates that half of Czech households would be able to cover the cost of living if they lost their main source of income for more than three months, while 27 percent of households would be able to cover it for more than six months.
By contrast, 16 percent of respondents said they wouldn’t have enough to tide them over for even a single month. These are mainly young people with lower education and lower incomes.
Recently published research from the Ministry of Finance suggested that 64 percent of Czechs had their financial affairs under control; in 2015 that figure was 75.
The research also shows that when it comes to simple calculations Czechs are less skilled than they were in 2010 or 2015.
According to the survey, about 90 percent of Czech households currently have a bank account, while in 2015 it was 79 percent and in 2010 67 percent of households.
The number of people doing online banking has also increased over the last decade, from around a third in 2010 to 75 percent today.
The Ministry of Finance recently launched the National Register for Financial Education, which so far includes 20 projects. The aim of the register is to spread information about projects providing financial education.
The measurement of financial literacy and the register of projects are part of the National Strategy for Financial Education 2.0, under which the Ministry of Finance is now focusing on vulnerable groups of adults, such as the elderly, people in material need and the unemployed, Czech Television said.
