By Tendani Mantshimuli, consumer economist, Liberty
Indicators to watch in the year ahead.

A possible global recession
Economic performance in 2012 is not expected to be much of an improvement on what we experienced in 2011. Global economic developments will still have a major impact on the domestic economy. Since it doesn’t look like the European economy will strengthen in a meaningful way; the OECD[1] is even forecasting a mild recession.

Also, the US sovereign debt problems have not been resolved. As 2012 is an election year, it might actually make resolutions more difficult to reach.

These developments might lead to a very bleak global economic outlook which will result in our growth remaining weak. Consequently, we cannot hope to see our exports faring well, which will have an impact on manufacturing performance in the year. As things stand now there is no indication that the SA economy might slide into a recession in 2012, but this is dependent on events outside of this country.

The rand and rising prices
The strength of the rand will be another thing to watch out for. A significant deterioration in the rand will have a negative influence on inflation developments.

International food prices and higher petrol prices are partly behind inflation being over the upper target band. While oil prices are high they haven’t been increasing steeply, so most of the increases we’ve seen in petrol prices were related to the weak rand. The weakness of the rand recently has been related to risk aversion and investors selling off emerging-market assets as a result of eurozone problems, not a result of SA economic fundamentals. Administered prices[2] will still continue to pose an upward risk to inflation. Eskom will be adding another tranche of the higher tariffs they requested from the energy regulator to finance power stations. These are mainly cost-push pressures, in other words created by the supplier rather than consumer demand, so an increase in interest rates would not be very effective against this type of inflation.

A concern for the SARB[3] will be if these price increases feed into expectations of higher salaries which will then influence wage negotiations; and so the spiral in price increases will become generalised throughout the economy.

What will happen to interest rates?
2012 will be a year of increasing inflation and weak economic growth; at least for the first half of the year. This will make the SARB’s job a bit tricky. Reading between the lines it is clear that price stability remains the primary focus of the bank. The bank is right to focus on inflation because higher prices affect everyone negatively, particularly low income earners; the rands you have at the beginning of the year should be able to buy more or less the same number of goods at the end of the year.

Currently the inflation rate for lower-income earners is 7.8%, well above the national average. The bank will have to fulfil their mandate of maintaining price stability while monitoring global economic developments and the potential impact on the domestic economy. This was made clear in the MPC[4] statement. The MPC is aware of the dangers of the worsening euro area crisis, and its possible effects on the global and domestic economy and on inflation. Should the need arise, the MPC will act and could even cut rates.

Article supplied by Liberty

Date: 14 December 2011
Time: 10:00-12:00
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Kindly advice us about available grants in this regard. Individual and other donations to facilitate the project are requested. We have received some help from the World Islamic Call Society and contacted many other and still await responses.
Dr Basheer B L Shabangu
basheer@realnet.co.sz
www.theiyos.org
Islamic Youth Organization of Swaziland.
Tel 00268 2505 8355 direct 00268 2505 5110
Mobile 00268 7602 1747.

Ladies Contact for Programmes Abeeda and Penelope 00268 7602 1982 (programmes include preschools with madressa, domestic and women and child anti-abuse campaigns, agriculture-dairy, poultry, goats, sports and dawah, etc)

DISCIPLINE /PUNISHMENT
______________________________________________________
Encourages the development of internal controls.
______________________________________________________
Child learn to cooperate in order to feel good about himself
______________________________________________________
Is consistent but flexible
______________________________________________________
Is logical and predictable
______________________________________________________
Encourages the making of wise choices and independent thinking
______________________________________________________
Develops high self-esteem
______________________________________________________
Encourages conscience development
______________________________________________________
Flourishes in a democratic atmosphere
______________________________________________________
Implies realistic expectations of the child
______________________________________________________
Encourages warm, caring relationships.

______________________________________________________
Allows child to learn from mistakes
______________________________________________________
Focuses on behaviour without condemning the child
______________________________________________________
Implies moral judgment and equates the person with the wrong behaviour
______________________________________________________
Permits choices and encourages a sense of autonomy and responsibility
______________________________________________________
Is concerned with present
______________________________________________________
PUNISHMENT
______________________________________________________
Relies on external control
______________________________________________________
Child learns to obey to avoid pain or discomfort
______________________________________________________
May be inconsistent or rigid
______________________________________________________
Is often arbitrary and illogical
______________________________________________________
Is based on power and control
______________________________________________________
Develops shame, guilt and anxiety
______________________________________________________
Encourages rebellion and deceit or dependent submissiveness
______________________________________________________
Belongs within an autocratic, authoritarian environment
______________________________________________________
May be inappropriate for the child’s developmental level
______________________________________________________
Encourages relationships based on fear and avoidance of hurt or power struggles.
______________________________________________________
Makes child afraid of making mistakes
______________________________________________________

______________________________________________________

______________________________________________________
Demands obedience and encourages dependence

______________________________________________________
Frequently drags up the past
______________________________________________________

EFFECTIVE PARENTING DISCIPLINE WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE

1. Negotiate rules with your children.
2. Enhance their self-esteem.
3. Teach accountability and consequences.
4. Parents must be role-models.
5. Parents must understand the life-world of children.
6. Teach children to be assertive.
7. Discuss and debate issues with your children.
8. Be an empathetic listener.
9. Bond with your children.
10. Punitive measures must be agreed upon and implemented.
11. Need for consistency.
12. Rewards must be used appropriately.
13. Intrinsic motivation and self-discipline needs to be applauded and encouraged.
14. Both parents must be consistent – no spouse must be undermined.
15. Discipline must be underpinned by love.
16. Avoid blaming, shaming and ridiculing such as “you are stupid.”
17. It is never too late to start.
18. Stay in a relationship with your children.
19. Affirm your children.
20. Look at the strengths of your children.
21. Remember comparisons are often odious.

Source: edriskhamissa.com

Step one: Make an appointment to see a reputable financial adviser
Probably the best way to find a reputable financial planner is via word of mouth. Ask around and let colleagues, friends and family guide you. Remember that personality is an important factor and what works for them, may not necessarily work for you, but it is only a starting point. Find someone whom they have been dealing with for some time and most importantly someone that they trust.

The web can also be a valuable source of information. Contact organisations such as the FPI at www.fpi.co.za to see a list of all of their affiliated financial advisers.

When you meet with the financial adviser don’t be hesitant to ask questions such as:
· How does he earn his fees? Is he commission based only or does he charge a fee for a consultation.

· What are his qualifications and how long has he been in the industry?

· Is he affiliated to only one financial services provider i.e.: a tied agent or is he independent and what are the implications of each option. If he is independent, which companies does he support and why?

Don’t feel intimidated by the process. In terms of FAIS (the law regulating the financial planning industry) he is obliged to disclose all of this information in writing anyway.

Step two: Do a comprehensive financial needs analysis
Once you feel comfortable with your financial adviser, the first step will be to conduct a thorough financial needs analysis. This will involve discussing your financial needs and goals, particularly in the event of death, disability and retirement.

You will need to give the financial adviser a good idea of where you stand currently in relation to these goals so that any gaps can be addressed. Make sure that you provide information such as existing policy information, your group benefits provided by your employer, current Will and information relating to your income.

Step three: Understanding the legal implications of your marriage
Were you aware of the fact that your marital regime may impact your financial plan? Make sure that you understand the basic implications of your marital status. The most common marital regimes include in community of property, or where an antenuptial contract has been signed, either out of community of property excluding the accrual or including the accrual system.

If you have chosen not to marry, but are living with someone as a so called “common law” spouse, make sure that you understand what this means from a financial planning perspective. For example, such a union which is deemed to be permanent may be regarded as a marriage. This gives you and your spouse certain rights and obligations.

Step four: Until death us do part…Make or revise your Will
No one likes to think about passing away, but fortunately having a plan for such uncertain events, does not make them happen. So take control of the process and ensure that your Will is up to date. Your Will is the only way that you will have any say in what will happen to your belongings if you pass away. It can also save costs and make sure that there is no delay in winding up your estate.

Step five: Losing a loved one…What would happen to your dependants if you were to pass away
Life cover can play an important role in any financial plan. It is a cost effective way to make sure that any wishes you have stated in your Will, can actually be funded. Consider using life cover to provide for dependants such as your spouse and/or children, paying off your bond or other debts and covering any estate duty or other costs arising from your death. Ultimately it allows you to leave a legacy for those that you love.

Step six: What about me?
Being diagnosed with a critical illness can be a life changing event, which can have enormous financial implications. By having comprehensive critical illness cover you can make sure that you can afford the best possible care and hopefully recover without facing financial ruin. Bear in mind that critical illness cover is designed to assist with the costs associated with the impact that the diagnosis has on your lifestyle. These costs may not seem like a big deal initially, but they can add up to a huge sum very quickly.

In 2010 Liberty paid a total of R 281.2 million in critical illness protection claims. 41% of those claims related to a cancer diagnosis. So the premise that it will never happen to you, just doesn’t hold any water. Make sure that your financial plan includes sufficient critical illness cover to make sure that your lifestyle is not affected by such a diagnosis.

Step seven: Disability
Becoming disabled can be devastating in so many ways. It doesn’t have to be devastating financially. In some ways, your ability to earn an income in the future could be regarded as your greatest asset, especially if you are young, well qualified and skilled.

Make sure that you consider what would happen financially if you were disabled either permanently or temporarily. Perhaps you would need a lump sum initially to meet expenses not covered by your medical aid and set up an environment to cater for your disability. Your long term need, may be to replace your income on a monthly basis. Having a plan to cater for these needs, at least makes sure that you don’t have to worry about the financial implications of any disability.

Step eight: Pay yourself first…
Retirement always seems such a long way off, but it is funny how these things creep up on you. How many pay days do you have left until retirement? Consider a client age 40, planning to retire at age 60 and with a life expectancy of 75 years. They have 240 pay days left to save for retirement. Sounds like a long time, until you realise that these 240 pay days need to provide them with sufficient income to provide for 180 pay days in retirement!

Thanks to medical technology, we are living longer. This means that we need to realistically consider that our retirement years may last longer than we expected. Have we saved enough to last this long? Have we considered the impact of stock market crashes, higher than expected inflation and possible job losses along the way.

Make sure that your retirement plan is robust enough to weather the challenges that it may face.

Step nine: Pennywise…Saving for a future goal
The definition of saving is simple, it is money that is not spent. But in order to really see a sound return you need to take it further than just saving. You need to invest. Bear in mind that your investment needs to outperform inflation so that you are earning a real return. The rule of 72 says that if inflation averages at 10% over the period of your investment, your buying power halves every 7 years!

Make sure that your investment suits your risk profile. If you are younger you may be willing to invest for a longer period, be more aggressive and willing to take on more risk. However the older investor may be more conservative and prioritise capital preservation.

Step ten: Saving for a rainy day…
A comprehensive financial plan must have some provision for everyday emergencies. You don’t want to have all your spare cash tied up in long term investments, and not be able to deal with a small emergency as it happens. Part of the process of setting up your emergency fund, would be to establish a monthly budget. Understand what your monthly expenses are and what, if anything, is left over at the end of the month.

Ideally aim to have three months worth of income or expenses in a readily accessible fund.

Step eleven: Consolidate all important information
Gather all of your important documents together and file them away in a safe place. It might be a good idea to have someone you trust keep a certified copy as well. This way they are readily available in case of need.
Make sure that you include:
· Your ID and/or passport

· Birth certificates

· Will

· Policy documents, share certificates and other investment information

· Antenuptial contract and marriage certificate if applicable

Step twelve: An action plan for the future…
Now that you have put your plan in place, it is time for action. Commit to an annual review with your financial adviser, but also remember to discuss any life changing events with him. This could be a change of job, birth of a child, marriage, divorce etc. All of these events can have an important impact on your financial plan.

To drive the importance of financial planning and understanding savings and insurance needs, Liberty is running a competition that encourages consumers to get obligation free financial advice with a chance of winning a prize worth R1million. All you need to be eligible to win, is an obligation free financial needs analysis (FNA) done through a Liberty Adviser or Broker, with no obligation to purchase any products.

The competition launched on the 10th October and runs until the end of January 2012. Customers have the opportunity of having free obligation advice to help them better understand their financial status.

The rules of the competition can be found on www.liberty.co.za

Note: The views and opinions expressed here are not necessarily those of the Editor of www.muslimmums.co.za.

*Ask your financial advisor about Shariah compliant products from Liberty

Sara submitted the following recipes:

Chicken sosaties

1kg Goldi chicken breasts (cut in big cubes)

MARINATE IN:

1¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon red chillies

3 tablespoon mayonnaise

3 tablespoon Italian salad dressing

1 teaspoon mixed herbs

Other items

1 bottle pickled onions

Pineapple cubes

3 green and red peppers

METHOD:

1. Put the cubes of chicken on skewers with pickled onions, peppers,
pineapple cubes (as desired).

2. Baste with butter and braai

3. Serve on platters with sauce.

SAUCE:

125g melted butter

2 tablespoon tomato sauce

2 tablespoon mayonnaise
lemon juice to taste

Crushed garlic

METHOD:

Boil together and pour over chicken sosaties.

Braai chicken breasts

12 Goldi chicken breasts

2 tablespoon lemon juice

salt to taste (± 2½ teaspoon)

½ cup yogurt

½ cup cream

2 tablespoon garlic paste

1 tablespoon ginger paste

2 teaspoon roasted and ground jeeru

2 teaspoon garam masala

1 teaspoon coarse black pepper

ghee or butter

Make incisions on the chicken breasts and rub in lemon juice, and salt. Refrigerate for a few hours

Mix the rest of the ingredients and marinate drumsticks for two hours

Braai, basting with ghee or butter.

Braai chicken masala

1 Goldi chicken, cut up into pieces for braai

1 teaspoon ginger garlic

1 tablespoon crushed red chillis

1 tablespoon mustard sauce

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoon flour

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tablespoon tomato sauce

Mix all ingredients and marinate chicken. Braai while basting with oil.

Here are some of the entries received so you can start preparing for tomorrow….

Chicken sosaties

1kg Goldi chicken breasts (cut in big cubes)

MARINATE IN:

1¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon red chillies

3 tablespoon mayonnaise

3 tablespoon Italian salad dressing

1 teaspoon mixed herbs

Other items

1 bottle pickled onions

Pineapple cubes

3 green and red peppers

METHOD:

1. Put the cubes of chicken on skewers with pickled onions, peppers,
pineapple cubes (as desired).

2. Baste with butter and braai

3. Serve on platters with sauce.

SAUCE:

125g melted butter

2 tablespoon tomato sauce

2 tablespoon mayonnaise
lemon juice to taste

Crushed garlic

METHOD:

Boil together and pour over chicken sosaties.

Braai chicken breasts

12 Goldi chicken breasts

2 tablespoon lemon juice

salt to taste (± 2½ teaspoon)

½ cup yogurt

½ cup cream

2 tablespoon garlic paste

1 tablespoon ginger paste

2 teaspoon roasted and ground jeeru

2 teaspoon garam masala

1 teaspoon coarse black pepper

ghee or butter

Make incisions on the chicken breasts and rub in lemon juice, and salt. Refrigerate for a few hours

Mix the rest of the ingredients and marinate drumsticks for two hours

Braai, basting with ghee or butter.

Braai chicken masala

1 Goldi chicken, cut up into pieces for braai

1 teaspoon ginger garlic

1 tablespoon crushed red chillis

1 tablespoon mustard sauce

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoon flour

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tablespoon tomato sauce

Mix all ingredients and marinate chicken. Braai while basting with oil.

Thanks to S Khan for the above

TAGLIETELLE ALFREDO!!!

Ingredients:

1/2packet alfredo(250g)
3 pieces fillet chicken cubed(250g)
1tsp fine salt
1 tsp grounded green chillies
1/2 tsp aromat
1tsp robertsons chicken spice
1tsp garlic
1tsp black pepper pwder
1 med green pepper cubed
1/2 punnet mushrooms saute in garlic butter
6 salami/polony slices(slice into strips n cut in 1/2)
1/2 (125ml)tub fresh cream
2tblsp flour
1 packet floyds/knorr mushroom sauce(or chick&mushroom pasta sauce).

METHOD:
Boil alfredo wit salt and 1tsp oil to avoid it from getting stuck. Cook chicken with spices,add cubed peppers. Make a paste with flour-add to chicken! Add fresh cream!Empty knorr/floyds sauce in mug-add boiling water-mix we’ll then add to chicken! Add alfredo to chicken-mix wel!mix saute mushrooms and add fried salami(macon) in2pasta.top wit grated cheese(optional).heat in oven before serving!

Thanks to Zakira Essack (Durban) for the above

Ingredients

GRILLED LIME CHICKEN BREASTS

Chicken breasts – (boneless, skinless)
1 cup lime juice
1 tablespoon Honey
3/4 cup Water
1/2 teaspoon Fresh ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon Ground thyme
2 tablespoons Vegetable oil
1 tablespoon Fresh ginger – (peeled, grated)

Combine all the ingredients except chicken in blender or food processor. Process until combined well. Pour over chicken.

Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator overnight. Grill over hot coals, turning once, until done.

Garnish with lime slices.

From ‘faymeera’

Send recipes to info@muslimmums.co.za or post below before 5pm.

Bring the kids and let us all together experience the spectacular 2nd Children of Islam Jalsah in commemoration of the 1400th solar anniversary of the revelation of the Holy Qur’an. With an attendance of 5000 it is dubbed as the “Biggest Gathering of Children in Gauteng” – an interactive programme by children for children – featuring qiraats, nasheeds, plays, skits, displays, thikr, the thundrous sounds of Takbir and more…

Ellis Park Arena (formerly the Standard Bank Arena), Johannesburg
Sunday, 25 September 2011 / 9am to 1pm

BOOK NOW AT COMPUTICKET. R100 per person. LIMITED SEATS!
www.computicket.co.za Tickets obtainable at all Checkers/Shoprite outlets.
(NB. All computicket proceeds towards defraying costs of invited school/madressah children attending).

Enquiries and information: info@awqafsa.org.za www.awqafsa.org.za
Contact: Faizel 0824516462 Shakera 0827759448 Zeinoul 0828768027
Click here to view poster www.awqafsa.org.za