Financial education as a contribution to the welfare of informal women vendors in downtown Soacha

Abstract

The problem of this research implies considering that according to the National Department of Statistics DANE (2024) labor informality in Colombia corresponds to 55.5% of the employed. These high levels of informality associated with low levels of financial education affect the welfare of people, including women who represent 53% of informal workers in the country. In this sense, taking informal women workers in Soacha as the subject of the study, it is pertinent to ask the question: What is the importance of financial education to improve the welfare of informal women workers in the center of Soacha? In search of basic elements that serve for the implementation of intervention processes that promote the welfare of these population groups. In this scenario, the research objective is to identify the potential of financial education to improve the welfare of informal women workers in downtown Soacha, using a quantitative methodology with a descriptive scope, using the survey technique as a mechanism for data collection and data analysis based on descriptive statistics. The results show that women in informal commerce in Soacha see financial education as a great potential to improve their wellbeing and quality of life; however, they do not consider it feasible to get involved in formal teaching and learning processes to acquire this knowledge. In this sense, a broad discussion is generated on how to bring financial education closer to informal workers who face barriers associated with time, costs and perceive that the public offer in this area is focused only on the formal sector. In conclusion, it is established that, in view of the difficulties encountered, non-conventional intervention strategies should be proposed to improve the welfare of this population group that has found in informality an alternative for satisfying its needs.