Minister Schouten starts a campaign about the risks of paying afterwards during Money Week | News item

News item | 13-03-2024 | 11:19

Minister Carola Schouten (Poverty Policy, Participation and Pensions) will be present on Friday, March 15, during the closing event of the Week of Money in the Beurs van Berlage in Amsterdam. During the event she will launch the new government campaign against post-payment. Young people also present their ideas to combat money problems among their peers. Queen Máxima will be present and will award prizes to the teams with the best ideas.

During Money Week, thousands of schools are committed to teaching children and young people about dealing with money, with this year’s theme: How can you BOSS your MONEY? A grand final event will take place in Amsterdam on Friday, March 15. Minister Carola Schouten is launching the new SZW campaign ‘Your Money is the Boss’ here, which the ministry is launching together with Wijzer in Geldzaken. The campaign focuses on young people between the ages of 15 and 21 and informs them about the risks of paying afterwards in order to prevent money problems. For this purpose, the ‘Pay Later Hangover’ is being introduced, a grumpy hangover that sticks to your belongings as long as you haven’t paid your bill.

Problems due to late payment

In recent years, the number of young people with payment problems has increased significantly. This is partly due to popular payment apps that encourage payment afterwards. The smart and seductive marketing of these types of companies focuses strongly on young people. But paying afterwards also entails risks. Amounts can quickly add up, but there is a danger that young people will fall into debt without realizing it. Research by Wiser in Money Matters shows that ten percent of young people between the ages of sixteen and nineteen sometimes experience financial problems due to purchasing on installments.

Ideas from young people

At the final event, groups of school and vocational students will present their ideas for a campaign to prevent money problems among their peers. They pitch these ideas to a jury consisting of Minister Schouten and Nibud director Arjan Vliegenthart. They choose two winners from this. The young people with the best ideas can help the ministry think about the next topic of the ‘Your Money is the Boss’ campaign.

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