By Wezi Tjaronda ONGWEDIVA The Bank of Namibia (BON) has published a booklet consisting of four chapters to educate Namibian citizens on the role and responsibilities of the central bank and its banking services to both the government and commercial banks. Titled “The Role of the Bank of Namibia in the Economy” which was launched at the Ongwediva Trade Fair last Friday by the Oshana Regional Governor, Clemens Kashupulwa, who welcomed it saying that people needed broader financial literacy. BON’s Deputy Governor, Paul Hartmann, said at the launch that it is an educational tool, mainly for young people, which gives consumers a better insight into the functions of banking systems and the bank’s role in that regard. Among its focus are the responsibilities of the bank, its services to commercial banks, and the government, how the bank conducts its monetary policy, how their national payment system operates and how the central bank supervises banking institutions and the banking system. The 100ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000 copies printed will be distributed to schools and other educational institutions. Oshana Regional Governor, Clemens Kashupulwa, who launched and welcomed the booklet saying that people needed broader financial literacy, said that at a time when the majority of Namibians are accessing credit and finance, they needed to be equipped with knowledge on how to manage their personal and business financial affairs. He lamented the fact that many households and private businesses are collapsing due to the lack of financial management skills. “Every time I open a newspaper, I see too many reported cases of default judgements against private and corporate citizens. Indeed, without the necessary skills on how to manage your personnel and without a basic understanding of the workings of the banking system, access to finance would be meaningless,” he said. Kashupulwa also added his voice to the ongoing debate on the exorbitant banking charges in the country. He said the general public not only wants affordable banking services and products, but also protection from exploitation. “I call upon all financial institutions to reach out to the rural areas of the country where our people still do not have access to banking services,” he said, adding that people in such areas were far from mainstream developments and were marginalized.