An expert has said many Kenyans are struggling too much to live a life they cannot afford.
Dr Gladys Nyachieo, a senior lecturer at Multi-Media University in the field of sociology, has said Kenyans are living a lifestyle that is too expensive to them.
She said, where one lives, the school the kids attend, how they dress and the car they drive, determine their status in the society.
To keep up with the society pressure, many families end up borrowing to sustain that lifestyle.
Dr Nyachie emphasized on middle-class people. A Kenyan whose monthly expenditure rangeS from Sh23,670 and Sh199,999 is considered to be a middle-class earner as per the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS).
She noted that this class of Kenyans are struggling and hustling more than those who spend less than Sh23,670 per month, that is, those who fall in the lower class.
She says it is unrealistic to wake up your children at 4 am so that they manage to be in a school in the rich neighbourhood in time.
She added that one should only borrow for developments purposes.
Apparently, many Kenyans can access loans at the comfort of their smartphones. Many youths have embraced these loan apps that are more than ready to give out loans.
“Many Kenyans are living a life they cannot afford, this is why you have children in a school bus at 4 am to get to a particular school in the suburbs. There is too much societal pressure to maintain the status quo attached to being middle class, forcing people to trap themselves in a cycle of unending debt, even with a reasonable salary.
"We end up hustling and struggling harder than those who form the lower classes just to dress, look or own certain things. Credit is supposed to facilitate development, not cripple you,” she says as quoted by Nation.
Dr Nyachie also said that a middle-class Kenyan should learn to spend effectively for each and every month, so that after getting what he or she needs for the month, he is able to remain with something little to save, and from such small savings, one can venture into businesses or rather investments, that will eventually make his or her dreams come true in terms of wealth.
She said everyone should know that borrowing just like betting, is addictive which will need enough dedication and efforts to stop.