Ukrainians know very little about money and how to manage it, according to a survey that the U.S. Agency for International Development and the National Bank of Ukraine released on June 6.
The survey has measured the national financial literacy of 28 countries and gave Ukraine and Poland the lowest scores — 11.6 out of 21. This is also the worst result among the 14 surveyed European countries.
Conducted in December 2018, the survey has assessed Ukrainians’ basic knowledge about money, their attitude towards spending, and the ability to plan out their budgets. USAID and NBU interviewed 2,000 people between the ages of 18 and 79.
Ukraine showed particularly “poor performance on the attitude and knowledge scores.” For knowledge, it received 4 out of 7 (7 being the highest) and attitude 2.4 out 5 (5 being the highest).
The country’s closest neighbors — Belarus, Georgia, Hungary, Poland, Russia, Turkey — all have shown better results.
“Ukrainians have very low levels of trust in many institutions like banks, while consumer protection laws are in early stages,” the document reads. “Ukraine has low incomes compared to its Eastern Europe neighbors. And there are very small markets for insurance, mortgages, investments and retirement savings.”
The overall financial literacy index in Ukraine showed big differences across age, income levels and education. The scores are the lowest in the 18-24 age group (10.6), and it increases significantly as a person’s income grows.
The survey also suggests that about half of Ukrainians are comfortable avoiding taxes and have much stronger attitudes towards short-term financial goals, and opt for quicker spending rather than saving.
Besides, 41 percent of the population of Ukraine feel uneasy talking about money, and so “it is hard to improve financial literacy,” the report says.
The only solid financial knowledge Ukrainians have, according to the survey, is of inflation and shopping discounts, which is based on personal experience.
