Consumer debt level of the Department of Health public servants in Mahikeng

Abstract

Studies as described in the literature review indicate that most South Africans are highly in debt. The South African Reserve Bank’s quarterly bulletin is one of the prominent barometers for measuring household debt in the country and over the last five years has been indicating a steady decline but still very high household debt among South Africans. Studies have also shown that this relates to poor financial literacy and consumer ignorance in applying basic financial management practices. This is discussed in Chapter two of the study. The aim of the study was to determine the consumer debt level of the Department of Health public servants in Mahikeng, North West Province. This study used a consumer survey to measure consumer indebtedness among public servants in Mahikeng. The results of the study support literature in that the study found that most public servants are indebted. The findings also showed that 63% of the public servants spent more than 20% of their income in servicing debt. Thirteen per cent of the public servants taking part in the study had been served with either garnishee or emolument orders. The results of the study seem to suggest that public servants working for the Department of Health in Mahikeng and taking part in the study were indebted.