Inculcating savings habit among emerging middle-class.

• Author: Nisar, Ahsan

Byline: Ahsan Nisar

Household savings are key to ensuring financial wellbeing, especially in countries like Pakistan, that do not have well developed social security nets. Emerging middle-class is rising as a consumer class that will play a significant role in the development of consumption-led economies. They are the consumers who are earning enough to start saving and investing and that's what makes them a crucial engine for economic growth.

They have a lot of pressing reasons to save: longer life spans, rising cost of education, health care and property. And they do save actively; two-thirds put aside for their top priority every month, while in India 17 percent of these consumers save every week.

The emerging middle-class are focused on achieving some very significant savings targets, from buying a home and providing an education for their children to thinking ahead to retirement. They are clearly ambitious, but they are facing a savings challenge. Despite this, they are active savers and, as such, are in a strong position to grow their savings.

Though they are saving regularly, this emerging class is relying on basic savings account as an approach to saving money, which could add years to the amount of time it takes them to achieve their savings...