Happy New Year 2024 and
Welcome Back to CENFACS’ Online Diary!
03 January 2024
Post No. 333
The New Year’s Contents
• What Is New at the Start of the New Year and What Is On This January 2024?
• The 12th Issue of Consume to Reduce Poverty and Climate Change – In Focus: Non-essential Consumption and Reduction of Consumption-based Poverty
• Coming up This Winter: The New Year’s and Next Issue of FACS (The 82nd Issue) to Be Titled as Private Homeownership and Secure Land Tenure to Reduce Poverty in Africa
… And much more!
The New Year’s Key Messages
• What Is New at the Start of the New Year and What Is on This January 2024?
~ New Tool, New Relief and New Hope
We have got the following initiatives to look forward to this January 2024 at CENFACS:
√ Consume to Reduce Poverty (Edition No. 12) with a Focus on Non-essential Consumption and the Reduction of Consumption-based Poverty
√ 2023 Year-end Financial Controls as Tools for Poverty Reduction
√ Financial Capacity and Capability Campaign 2024
√ 2024 Africa Not-for-profit Investment Outlook
√ Nature-positive Projects (New)
√ Nature-based Solutions to Poverty.
The above mentioned initiatives are amongst the ones we have selected to kick-start 2024. Apart from them, we shall take a moment to reflect on the poverty reduction landscape of 2023 and how we can move forward in 2024. In particular, we will be working together with beneficiaries on the following:
√ Projects of Just, Orderly and Equitable Energy Transitions
√ Fossil-free Projects
√ Humanitarian Relief Appeals with Six Identified Areas of Priority that May Need Lighting a Blaze of Hope (as announced last week) to help address unfinished businesses or potential crises or tension hotspot places
√ Climate Actions to keep pace with net zero path and poverty reduction.
To complete the picture about our working plan for the first quarter of 2024, we shall soon unveil the remaining selected initiatives making the Season of Light at CENFACS.
• The 12th Issue of CRPCC (Consume to Reduce Poverty and Climate Change) – In Focus: Non-essential Consumption and the Reduction of Consumption-based Poverty
January is the month of Responsible Consumption for CENFACS. The initiative featuring this month is our resource entitled as Consume to Reduce Poverty and Climate Change (CRPCC). In this first post of 2024, we have highlighted the contents this year’s edition of CRPCC – Edition 2024 or the 12th Issue.
The 12th Issue of this resource will be on ‘Non-essential Consumption and the Reduction of Consumption-based Poverty’. However, before giving the message about the 12th Issue of CRPCC, let us briefly re-explain what normally happen in January.
• • January as a Month of Responsible Consumption within CENFACS
Some of you are aware that January is our month of Responsible Consumption following CENFACS development calendar. It means that the theme for January is Responsible or Sustainable Consumption and the monthly project carrying this theme is Consume to Reduce Poverty and Climate Change.
• • • What does happen in January?
January is the month we act against poverty due to the lack of consumption and we deal with measures of poverty reduction through consumption. It is also an opportunity to act to preserve a good relationship between the way in which we consume products on the one hand and the reduction of adverse climate change on the other.
Particularly, January is a climate reminder month as it is the month during which we raise awareness of the relationships between humans and the nature through sustainable consumption; that is consumption that does not destroy the nature or a change in consumption habits that are adjusted to human real needs and to chosen market options of promoting environmental conservation and social equality.
• • • What will happen this January?
This January, we will take an extra step by exploring the relationship between humans and non-essential products and services, between humans and ways of reducing poverty linked to consumption, particularly the consumption of non-essentials.
• • • What is Consume to Reduce Poverty and Climate Change (CRPCC) ?
CRPCC is our users’ New Year supporting information and accompanying booster that focuses on Buying and Consumption elements conducive to the reduction of poverty and hardships and of negative effects of climate change. It is indeed a complimentary support to our Autumn Festive Income Boost (FIB) resource.
The FIB is an income-generating resource while CRPCC brings in a consumption-led look in our fight against poverty and negative climate change. The current Edition (Edition No. 12) of CRPCC deals with ‘Non-essential Consumption and the Reduction of Consumption-based Poverty’ as mentioned above.
For further details about CRPCC project, go to http://cenfacs.org.uk/services-activities/
• • The 12th Issue of CRPCC (Consume to Reduce Poverty and Climate Change) – In Focus: Non-essential Consumption and the Reduction of Consumption-based Poverty
Rich and poor can consume non-essential items. However, when we speak about the people in need, including those making the CENFACS Community, often we refer to their needs or the minimum which is necessary for their survival as human beings or even essential products and services to maintain their lives.
Yet, these people in need have also non-essential consumption or wants they would like to meet. Wants are unlimited or infinite, while needs are finite. In this 2024 Edition of CRPCC, it is about these wants or non-essential consumption that we are dealing with and how one can use them to reduce consumption-based poverty.
The 2024 Edition of CRPCC is indeed about working with users to try to solve the basic economic problem of how to allocate the unlimited resources they possess to infinite wants they have. It is a New Year treat of non-essential expenses, which are usually the expenses that one does not necessarily need. They are also called discretionary expenses as people can maintain their lives without them. They make 30% of the 50/30/20 budgeting rule for any household.
In this 12th Issue of CRPCC, we are interested in these 30% of the household budget that suppose to cover non-essential consumption. We are keen in finding out how many of people making the CENFACS Community, who are able to cover these 30%, can reduce poverty linked to this consumption. We are as well dealing with those who cannot cover them and how they can reduce poverty linked to non-essential consumption.
The 2024 Edition of CRPCC does not stop there. It provides tips and hints on both those who can cover non-essential consumption and those cannot, so that both of them can find their way to reduce consumption-based poverty.
Under the Main Development section of this post, we have further explained the theme of ‘Non-essential Consumption and the Reduction of Consumption-based Poverty’, and how to meet them.
• Coming up This Winter: The New Year’s and Next Issue of FACS (The 82nd Issue) to Be Titled as Private Homeownership and Secure Land Tenure to Reduce Poverty in Africa
Private homeownership and land tenure are important in the process of reducing poverty in Africa. Their importance has been recognised by many organisations and institutions including the World Bank (1), which recommends the increase in land access and tenure for the poor and vulnerable by redistributing rural land, providing ownership rights for squatters on urban public land, removing restrictions on rental land and promoting gender equity by documenting the land rights for women.
Despite this recognition, there are places or parts of the world where the poor and vulnerable are still lacking land access and tenure. Africa is amongst them. Although Africa is the world’s second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia in both cases, it is also a continent where people struggle to own a home and/or land. This is to such extent that Africa leads in terms of the percentage of urban population living in informal settlements.
Yet, promoting sustainable land and inclusive governance in Africa is part of land policy in Africa and will help achieve aspirations and goals of the Agenda 2063. Likewise, the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 11 (2) is about making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. The first target of the same goal (that is, Goal target 11.1) is “By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums”. Many wonder if this goal target will be completed by its deadline.
Given the fact that Africa is lagging behind in terms of homeownership and land tenure for its ordinary population, the underlying theme of the 82nd Issue of FACS will deal with the twin problems of homeownership and land in Africa in the areas of operation of CENFACS‘ Africa-based Sister Charitable Organisations (ASCOs). It will shade light on the right to securely own land or to occupy and exclusively use a particular piece of land.
However, the 82nd Issue of FACS will have a limited scope as it will not have ambition to treat all questions relating to homeownerships and lands in Africa. Instead, the Issue will focus on the problems faced by CENFACS‘ ASCOs and their beneficiaries who may be homeless, landless, poor home-owners and poor renters; and who would like to work with them in order to reduce poverty and unsustainability linked to the lack of access to private homeownership and secure land tenure.
In this respect, the 82nd Issue will examine the relationship between poverty reduction and homeownership, between poverty reduction and land tenure in today’s Africa, in particular in the areas where CENFACS‘ ASCOs operate. The Issue will make the case for the need to develop private homeownership and secure land tenure that benefit the poor.
The 82nd Issue will deal with the allocation of power on home and land, and how this allocated power can help reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development. Indeed, access to homeownership and control over land can achieve a lot of things for those living in poverty. They can help them to have a fixed place to build and plan their lives. Having a home and/or a secure land can be the first step to reduce poverty and enhance sustainable development.
It is not surprise if the ‘unhabitat.org’ (3) argues that
“Secure land tenure and property rights enable people in urban and rural areas to invest in improved homes and livelihoods”.
Similarly, the International Fund for Agriculture Development (4) explains the following:
“Land is fundamental to the lives of poor rural people. It is a source of food, shelter, income and social identity… Tenure security is important not only for agriculture production. It also allows people to diversify their livelihoods by using their land as collateral, renting it out or selling it”.
The 82nd Issue will consider the appropriate private property rights theories and land rights theories used as it will combine scarcity, overbearing State and traditional culture arguments in explaining homeownership and land issues in Africa. It will approach private homeownership as private property. Private property can be explained by the definition of ‘study.com’ (5) as
“Ownership of tangible or intangible property by an individual entity, rather than by the state or a common owner”.
Far from being an account of homeownership and land theories, the Issue will be a story of ASCOs working with poor homeless and landless to find inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable settlements. From this perspective, the Issue will provide some examples on how ASCOs are trying to work with their locals in order to reduce poverty due to the lack of homeownership and secure land, and how the former are helping the latter to adequately, safely and affordably access and climb the property ladder and/or secure land tenure.
The 82nd Issue further will explain how the lack of genuine property rights or their enforcement can conduce and constrain the economic development of certain ethnic groups and rural women. Beyond this explanation, the Issue will provide some leads to the problems faced by these groups and women, particularly for groups located in the spheres of operation of ASCOs.
The 82nd Issue will cover areas such as accessibility and affordability of homes to poor people, poor people as homeowners, women’s rights to own land especially in rural areas, residential mobility among low-income earners, sustainable housing for the poor, achieving sustainable homeownership for all, how ASCOs are working with their locals to reduce or end poverty linked to the lack of homeownership and land tenure, etc.
More details about the 82nd Issue of FACS will be given this Winter. However, for those who would like to enquire about it before it appears, they should not hesitate to contact CENFACS.
The New Year’s Extra Messages
• Gifts of Peace, Edition 2023-2024
• 2023 Year-end Financial Controls as Tools for Poverty Reduction
• New Year’s Structured Finance Activities/Micro-projects under Financial Capacity and Capability Building Programme/Scheme
• Gifts of Peace, Edition 2023-2024
Gifts of Peace for Edition 2023-2024 will end on 31 January 2024. If you have not yet supported, you can still do something for poverty relief and for healing the lingering economic effects of the 2019 pandemic and the scars of the cost-of-living crisis.
Although the deadline for the Season of Donation for these gifts is 31 January 2024, we will still accept any donations made after this deadline to enable those who will not be in a position to donate by this deadline to have a chance to donate after.
Please do not wait for the expiration of the deadline as the needs are pressing and urgent.
We know that many supporters of good causes have been affected by the cost-of-living crisis. We are as well aware of the current economic situation of hard landing in boost after the high inflation period and economic growth is very low, which both complicate the way people donate to good causes.
However, for those who can please do not hesitate to support these noble causes of peace since the potential beneficiaries of them are trebly impacted by:
a) The lingering economic effects of previous crises (like the coronavirus)
b) The already extremely poor conditions in which they are living
c) The scars of the enduring cost-of-living crisis.
Every support counts to help reduce and end extreme poverty.
Please keep the Gifts of Peace in your mind as the giving season continues.
For further details about these Gifts of Peace and or to support, go to http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/
We look forward to your support. Thank you!
• 2023 Year-end Financial Controls as Tools for Poverty Reduction
Year-in-review accounts are one of the financial tools we would like to work and share with our users as we explained in our last post of 2023. They are part of year-end financial control project or exercise which includes income boost and other financial tools making our year-end campaign to reduce and end poverty, particularly income poverty.
To understand year-end financial controls, it is better to know what financial controls are about. According to ‘corporatefinanceinstittute.com’ (6),
“Financial controls are the procedures, policies and means by which an organisation monitors, and controls the direction, allocation, and usage of its financial resources. Financial controls are at the very core of resource management and operational efficiency in any organisation”.
This definition of financial controls can be applied to households. Like any organisation, households need to have and implement financial controls framework to manage, document, analyse, and report household transactions. These financial controls can be directional or selective or on particular household financial statements like balance sheet, cash flows, income statement, etc.
For those (individuals, families or households) who need help to manage or close their 2023 year-in-review accounts, they can contact CENFACS prior to the end of 2023-2024 tax year or by the 5th of April 2024.
• New Year’s Structured Finance Activities/Micro-projects under Financial Capacity and Capability Building Programme/Scheme
We are resuming Financial Capacity and Capability Building Programme and Scheme, which we started in December 2023. We are available to work in hybrid mode with users via a Financial Capacity and Capability Building Programme (FCCBP) or Scheme (FCCBS) so that they can start stronger in this New Year. Both FCCBP and FCCBS will help beneficiaries to reduce risks linked to financial incapacity and incapability while improving their intergenerational income and transfers.
These are exclusive New Year activities to maximise programme and scheme beneficiaries’ financial management and decision-making for a successful financial year. To practise FCCBP and FCCBS , we are carrying out structured New Year finance activities this January 2024.
• • New Year’s Structured Finance Activities as Part of Financial Capacity and Capability Building Programme
FCCBP is a set of structured planned actions or events designed to help users to better manage financial aspects of New Year celebrations, to develop financial knowledge and skills, to make life-saving financial decisions and to invest in financial capacity and capability goals
As a result, we will be working on how people and families can be involved a series of the following structured New Year activities or small projects:
Activity 1: Investing in realistic goals about financial capacity and capability
Activity 2: Managing financial aspects of New Year events
Activity 3: Making financial knowledge and skills positively impact on your financial behaviour
Activity 4: Taking sensible life-saving financial decisions
Activity 5: How to generate little extra income in order to reduce poverty.
These activities are run in the forms of advice, advocacy, e-discussion, workshop, focus group, survey, direct questions/answers, etc. More details about them can be obtained from CENFACS.
• • New Year’s Structured Finance Activities as Part of Financial Capacity and Capability Building Scheme
FCCBS is a plan or system for achieving the goals of financial capacity and capability. It helps to work with users so that they can elaborate a systematic plan of future action about their financial capacity and capability for a week or month or year (2024). Through this exercise, we shall use some financial capacity and capability tools to work with users to design basic financial plans, policies, systems, strategies, etc. to deal with their problems. Under this scheme, we can organise together the following New Year activities:
Activity 1: Financial Capacity and Capability to make ends meet (e.g., coping and survival strategies)
Activity 2: Financial Capacity and Capability to plan head (plan and save for the future)
Activity 3: Financial Capacity and Capability to organise money management (e.g., money management plan)
Activity 4: Financial Capacity and Capability to make financial decisions and act through budgeting
Activity 5: Financial Capacity and Capability to control spending through spending plan.
Briefly, we will be working on how people and families having the issues of financial capacity and capability can work out systematic plans for future action to improve their financial capacity and capability, and where possible generate income in order to reduce continuing poverty and hardships. In particular, we will make sure about what scheme is workable or unworkable for them.
In the end, we hope that the financially incapacitated or incapable people and families can develop their own individual working FCCBP and FCCBS plans or policies to establish financial capacity and capability as well as generate little extra incomes through income generation plan. In doing so, they can improve their intergenerational economy and transfer accounts.
Need New Year’s advice or support to deal with the problems of financial capacity and capability you are experiencing, please do not hesitate to contact CENFACS.
If you have financial planning problems, you can contact CENFACS so that we can work together on your financial planning needs and help you to start this New Year stronger and confident with a financial plan or a system or a policy.
Message in French (Message en français)
• Dons de Paix, édition 2023-2024
Les Dons de Paix pour l’édition 2023-2024 se termineront le 31 janvier 2024. Si vous ne l’avez pas encore fait, vous pouvez toujours faire quelque chose pour soulager la pauvreté et guérir les effets économiques persistants de la pandémie de 2019 et les cicatrices de la crise du coût de la vie.
Bien que la date limite pour la Saison des Dons pour ces cadeaux soit le 31 janvier 2024, nous accepterons toujours tous les dons effectués après cette date limite pour permettre à ceux et celles qui ne seront pas en mesure de faire un don avant cette date butoir d’avoir une chance de faire un don par la suite.
Veuillez ne pas attendre l’expiration du délai car les besoins sont pressants et urgents.
Nous savons que de nombreux/ses partisan(e)s de bonnes causes ont été touché(e)s par la crise du coût de la vie. Cependant, pour ceux ou celles qui le peuvent, n’hésitez pas à soutenir ces nobles causes de paix puisque les bénéficiaires potentiels de celles-ci sont triplement impactés par:
a) Les effets économiques persistants des crises précédentes (comme le coronavirus)
b) Les conditions déjà extrêmement mauvaises dans lesquelles ils vivent
c) Les cicatrices de la crise persistante du coût de la vie.
Chaque soutien compte pour aider à réduire et à mettre fin à l’extrême pauvreté.
S’il vous plaît, gardez les Dons de Paix à l’esprit pendant que la saison des dons se poursuit.
Pour plus de détails sur ces Dons de Paix et/ou pour les soutenir, rendez-vous sur http://cenfacs.org.uk/supporting-us/
Nous comptons sur votre soutien. Merci!
The New Year’s Main Development
• The 12th Issue of Consume to Reduce Poverty and Climate Change (CRPCC)
In Focus: Non-essential Consumption and the Reduction of Consumption-based Poverty
• • Key highlights, Tips and Hints about the 12th Issue of CRPCC
The key highlights, Tips and Hints include the following:
∝ Key Terms
∝ Relationships between Non-essential Consumption and Poverty Reduction
∝ Non-essential Consumption Shopping Basket
∝ The Dilemma between Non-essential Consumption and Circular Economic Model
∝ Non-essential Consumption and the Growing Climate Economy
∝ Non-essential Consumption in the Context of Changing Climate and Life-threatening Impacts of Climate Change
∝ Non-essential Consumption and Crises
∝ Poor Consumers and their Affordability of Non essentials
∝ Non-essential Consumption Good Practices within the Community
∝ Demonstrative Projects of Non-essential Consumption
∝ Budgeting for Non-essential Consumption
∝ Non-essential Consumption Indication on Products for Verification, Identity and Authenticity
∝ Non-essential Security and Guarantee
∝ Looking for Help and Support on Non-essentials.
Let us consider these key highlights, tips and hints.
• • • Key Terms
There are three terms that facilitate the understanding of the 2024 Edition of CRPCC. These terms are: consumption-based poverty, non-essential consumption and the 50/30/20 budgeting rule. Let us briefly explain them.
• • • • What is Reduction of Consumption-based Poverty?
The reduction of consumption-based poverty is part of CENFACS’ 2020s Development Agenda and Poverty Reduction Programme (7). It relates to the second goal of this programme; goal which is Consume sustainably to reduce poverty and climate change.
To explain the reduction of consumption-based poverty, one needs to know consumption-based poverty.
Tara O’ Neil describes it on the website of ‘americanactionforum.org’ (8) in terms of measure by arguing that
“A consumption-based poverty measure assesses what people consume or purchase, regardless of how it was paid for (whether through income, tax credits, or non-cash benefits) to determine whether their needs are being met or not. In other words, this metric accounts for all types of benefits and aid that might be provided, as well as expenses”.
This measure can be to determine if for example the members of the CENFACS Community are experiencing poverty linked to consumption (including non-essential consumption). From this information, we can support them to find their way to reduce non-essential consumption-based poverty.
• • • • What is Non-essential Consumption?
To clarify non-essential consumption, we are going to break it into two: non-essential and consumption. Consumption is understood here from the definition given by Chris Park (9) as
“The process of using resources to satisfy human wants or needs” (p. 96)
From this definition, consumption is being perceived from the micro-economic perspective (from the point of view of individuals, households and firms), not at national or aggregate demand level. Consumption is here the use of goods and services by individuals or households. That consumption can be on essential and/or non-essential products (i.e., goods or services). In other words, it can be about satisfying human needs or wants.
In this 12th Edition of CRPCC, we are interested in that part of consumption relating to non-essentials or wants (that is, the desires for the consumption of goods and services).
Non-essential consumption is related to non-essential expenses. The latter are defined by ‘readersdigest.co.uk’ (10) as
“The expenses that you don’t necessarily need”.
The same website ‘readersdigest.co.uk’ provides the following examples of non-essential expenses: clothes, shoes, makeups, video games, gym memberships and Netflix. These expenses are also called discretional expenses. In other words, individuals or households are able to maintain themselves even if these discretional expenses are stopped. This was the case during the coronavirus crisis. Like any expenses, they are part of budgeting rule.
• • • • What is the 50/30/20 Budgeting Rule?
The website ‘thebalancemoney.com’ (11) argues that the 50/30/20 rule of thumb, which originates from the 2005 book written by US Senator Elizabeth Warren and her daughter Amelia Warren Tyafi, is
“A way to allocate your budget according to three categories: needs, wants and financial goals”.
According to this rule, you should put aside 30% of your income (after tax) for your wants. Wants are what you desire but don’t actually need in order to survive. They include hobbies, vacations, dining out, digital and streaming services like Netflix and Hulu.
In the context of the 12th Edition of CRPCC, we are interested in these 30% or wants or non-essentials, instead of needs or 50% of your budget or essentials. We are looking at if there is any relationships between wants and poverty reduction and how we can work with the users of CRPCC to reduce consumption-based poverty, which could be linked with non-essentials or wants.
• • • Relationships between Non-essential Consumption and Poverty Reduction
There could be relationships between non-essentials and poverty reduction. For example, if non-essential item is clothes and poverty is expressed by the lack of clothing to cover your body; then reducing clothing poverty can be related to the want of clothes. Clothing poverty is described by ‘hellograds.com (12) as
“The situation in which people have very little or nothing to wear on a day-to-day basis”.
To further explain these relationships, let us refer to what ‘justfair.org’ (13) argues about clothing. It argues the following:
“Clothing is a fundamental human right. By law, the right of clothes is a key aspect of our right to an adequate standard of living – outlined by Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), alongside other basic necessities like food and housing”.
Additionally, there are studies that argue ending extreme poverty requires increasing the consumption levels of all people living below the international poverty line of US$2.15. Non-essential consumption is also part of this increase. However, there are other bodies of work which recognise that any increase of consumption (including from the poor) can lead to rise in carbon dioxide emissions. There is a third type of arguments that explain that the goals of poverty reduction via consumption increase can be compatible with the containment strategy of climate change. But, this can only happen under defined conditions.
• • • Non-essential Consumption Shopping Basket
Using the internet, e-mail, social networks and other communication technologies; it is possible to get enough information about products and services that meet non-essential consumption while reducing poverty at the same time. It is as well possible to find resources and websites that compare these kinds of products, services and prices. People can then choose products and services that are good value for non-essential consumption and add them to their online shopping basket.
• • • The Dilemma between Non-essential Consumption and Circular Economic Model
Embracing the recipes of the economic model that decouples (bad) exploitation of natural resources and the desire to meet human needs and wants (circular economy), can help improve consumer behaviour via essential consumption. It is said that all processes create waste. However, the circular economic model helps to direct consumption towards what is essential to maintain human life; in doing so it benefits humans to fix, reuse, reduce and save resources through their consumption.
There is dilemma if non-essential consumption is considered as being the opposite of what is essential to maintain human life. Non-essential is about wants, but not needs. To resolve this dilemma, it is required to ensure that non-essential goods and services or human wants do not create waste. If wants can be zero waste, then there is a possibility that they can contribute to the circular economic model.
• • • Non-essential Consumption and the Growing Climate Economy
The process of using resources in a frugal way to satisfy human wants and needs can goes hand in hand with an organised system for the production, distribution and use of goods and services that takes into account the changing weather conditions. In other words, consuming anti-wasteful and essential products and resources can help reduce adverse climate change.
As climate economy (that is, a system which attempts to solve the basic economic problem of climate) continues to grow, it can bring new climate educational opportunities, economic savings and improved well-being for the poor. These attributes of the Growing Climate Economy (GCE) can help them consume goods and services that are essential and have less or no harmful wasteful materials.
Nonetheless, research can help find goods and services that are non-essential and not causing harms and wastes to the environment. In this respect, not all non-essentials are wasteful and harmful. Non-essentials that are not wasteful and not harmful can make their in the GCE.
• • • Non-essential Consumption in the Context of Changing Climate and Life-threatening Impacts of Climate Change
Maybe enough has been said about the impacts of changing climate. If not, then one area of work could be for humans to rethink about the negative waste that their non-essential consumption can create. If there is such harmful waste for some types of consumption, then there could a need to reduce it and shift to essential consumption for the sake of the environment and the nature on which we all depend.
• • • Non-essential Consumption and Crises
In times of crises, people are sometimes advised or decide by themselves to cut down on non-essentials. For example, in March 2023 ‘theguardian.com’ (14) reported that according to research from KPMG more than half of UK consumers cut back on discretional spending and nearly two-thirds chose to reduce amount they spend on eating out. Many of them did so because of fear about their financial security which they thought was under threat due to hikes in food and energy prices. However, before cut non-essential consumption, people need first to assess the impact on both essential and non-essential items and decide which ones they want to keep or cut down.
• • • Poor Consumers and their Affordability of Non-essentials
Non-essential consumption is not always the cheapest one. Not everybody can afford to buy non-essential goods as many of them may even lack access to affordable non-essential goods and services. Let us take the example of broadband. Not all the low-income families or households can afford to hire broadband or to have internet at home. Yet, broadband or internet at home can be essential for some and non-essential for others.
Giving them advisory support in terms how to increase your income, to make some changes in their expenses budget and find affordable non-essential consumption goods and services should be a priority amongst other ones. In this respect, a list of where to find affordable non-essential consumption goods and services in this CRPCC resource can be life-saving.
• • • Non-essential Consumption Good Practices within the Community
Despite the problem of affordability of non-essential goods for low income poor people and families, there could be nonetheless non-essential consumption good practices within our community. To back up these practices, the 12th Issue of CRPCC highlights some cases of non-essential consumption good initiatives undertaken by the CENFACS Community that underpins non-essential consumption accounts as part of every day’s human life.
In this respect, those who have cases of essential consumption practices and who may find them worthwhile to share and be added to this issue of CRPCC, they can let CENFACS know.
• • • Demonstrative Projects of Non-essential Consumption
In non-essential consumption economy, every shopper demonstrates the ability to follow the rules of non-essentially consuming. There could be those consumers who do more by taking a proactive action to consume non-essentially.
Likewise, there could be local projects (for example, local non-essential charitable shops, non-essential budget stores and community organisations) that could display demonstrative talents and skills in promoting non-essential consumption goods, services and habits which are zero-waste or net zero.
For those members of our community who have developed this kind of demonstrative projects of non-essential consumption, it could be a good idea to let us know so that we can add them to this CRPCC resource.
• • • Barriers to Achieve Essential Consumption Goals
There could be some handicaps for people and families to achieve non-essential consumption goals. One of the barriers is the lack of income that extremely poor people experience that could push them out of reach of non-essential consumption products. Despite that in charitable world and economy in which no one is left behind, there could be still access for everybody to non-essential consumption goods and services.
However, people and families do not like non-essential consumption to happen to them in this way since they would like to work and pay for their non-essential consumption. Because of the barriers they face in finding opportunity to work and earn decent income, their prospect for meeting their non-essential consumption goals becomes remote. This is without forgetting hikes in price of non-essentials.
As part of tackling these barriers, the current resource provides some leads in terms of print and online resources that users can further explore in order to respond to some their non-essential consumption problems.
• • • Budgeting for Non-essential Consumption
It is a good idea for users to budget for non-essential consumption goods and services as part of the overall of household budgeting process. This kind of preparation in terms of financial statement for any planned incomes and expenses for a particular period can help to maximise the use of resources and reduce wasteful spending in terms of what is essential and non-essential consumption. It can as well provide alternative to non-essential consumption to reduce poverty and hardships due to waste.
• • • Non-essential Consumption Indication on Products for Verification, Identity and Authenticity
It is a good idea for any consumer, rich or poor, to check non-essential features on their buys and other specifications and read other people’s testimonies, reviews or comments about it. In this respect, selling the positive idea of non-essential consumption could be helpful for non-essential consumers.
• • • Non-essential Security and Guarantee
When buying non-essential consumption products and services (whether using online or a physical store), one needs to check, compare and contrast products, terms and conditions of business, buying terms, prices, etc. There is a need to check as well guarantees and safety policies for non-essential features.
If you are buying online, before you sign up, add to your non-essential consumption shopping basket and purchase an item; you need to read, discuss and check what you are agreeing on. You may even take more precautions when selecting items, filling up buying forms to enter your personal, financial information and sensitive details.
You should also be aware of scams and illegal and malicious practices. For own online security, use the e-safety tools and advice.
• • • Looking for Help and Support on Non-essentials
For those users who are looking for help and support, we can work with them so that they can navigate their way out non-essential consumption-based poverty. We can together explore the following options to deal with discretional or non-essential spending:
√ Improving their spending intent
√ Setting up cost cutting targets on budget items such as takeaways, eating out, clothing, etc.
√ Switching to cheap non-essential retailers to save money
√ Trimming budget
√ Prioritising expenses
√ Setting up a policy not to borrow money for non-essentials
√ Adopting cost-saving behaviour
√ Briefly, developing a strategy or policy to control non-essential spending.
The above-mentioned options or tools will help them to build confidence throughout 2024 and beyond.
For those users who would like to dive into the reduction of non-essential consumption-based poverty, we can provide them with online and print resources relating to the matters. These resources can highlight the following points: affordable non-essential retailers, where to eat out cheaply, plan before buying non-essentials, non-essential tracker, etc.
There is a lot of online resources and websites they can sign up and receive advice on these following matters.
The above are the key highlights, tips and hints about the 12th Issue of CRPCC we wanted to share with you.
For further details about Non-essential and Responsible Consumption and get the full 2024 Edition of Consume to Reduce Poverty and Climate Change, please contact CENFACS.
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• References
(1) https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/afr/publication/securing-africas-land-for-shared-prosperity# (accessed in January 2024)
(2) https://sdgs.un.org/2030agenda (accessed in January 2024)
(3) https://unhabitat.org/sites/default/files/2020/07/indicator_1.4.2_training_module_secure_tenure_rights_to_land.pdf (accessed in January 2024)
(4) https://www.ifad.org/documents/38714170/39148759/Land+tenure+security+and+poverty+reduction.pdf/ (accessed in January 2024)
(5) https://study.com/academy/lesson/private-property-economics-overview-rights-examples.html (accessed in January 2024)
(6) https://corporatefinancialinstitute.com/resource/career-map/sell-side/risk-management/financial-controls/ (accessed in January 2024)
(7) cenfacs.org.uk/2020/03/11/the-2020s-agenda-and-programme/ (accessed in January 2024)
(8) Hayes, T. O. (2021), Measuring Poverty in United States: Comparing Measurement Methods, American Action Forum at https://www.americanactionforum.org/research/measuring-poverty-in-the-united-states-comparing-measurement-methods/ (accessed in January 2024)
(9) Park, C. (2011), Oxford Dictionary of Environment and Conservation, Oxford University Press, Oxford & New York
(10) https://www.readersdigest.co.uk/money/managing-your-money/how-to-differentiate-between-essential-and-non-essential-expenses (accessed in January 2024)
(11) https://www.thebalancemoney.com/the-50-30-20-rule-of-thumb-453922 (accessed in January 2024)
(12) https://hellograds.com/news/clothing-poverty-awareness/ (accessed in January 2024)
(13) https://justfair.org.uk/home/blog/guest-blog/this-is-a-human-rights-issue-the-hidden-truth-about-clothing-poverty/ (accessed in January 2024)
(14) https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/apr/03/half-of-all-uk-consumers-have-cut-non-essential-spending (accessed in January 2024)
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• Help CENFACS Keep the Poverty Relief Work Going this Year
We do our work on a very small budget and on a voluntary basis. Making a donation will show us you value our work and support CENFACS’ work, which is currently offered as a free service.
One could also consider a recurring donation to CENFACS in the future.
Additionally, we would like to inform you that planned gifting is always an option for giving at CENFACS. Likewise, CENFACS accepts matching gifts from companies running a gift-matching programme.
Donate to support CENFACS!
FOR ONLY £1, YOU CAN SUPPORT CENFACS AND CENFACS’ NOBLE AND BEAUTIFUL CAUSES OF POVERTY REDUCTION.
JUST GO TO: Support Causes – (cenfacs.org.uk)
Thank you for visiting CENFACS website and reading this post.
Thank you as well to those who made or make comments about our weekly posts.
We look forward to receiving your regular visits and continuing support throughout 2024 and beyond.
With many thanks.
