I work as a police officer in the traffic department. I am aged 37. I am not married, but I have a child who is in Grade 6. I make about Sh58,000 per month, but I have deductions amounting to close to Sh54,000. This leaves me with just about Sh5,000 to survive on.
These deductions include: Child support - Sh12,000, bank loan- Sh21,000, Platinum loan Sh8,300, Hela loan Sh11,800. Most of these debts were for businesses that I opened, but they collapsed in less than six months. I don't pay rent as I live in the police quarters. I am forced to seek money to plug the holes in my budget using other tactics. I would like to pay off my debts, clean up my finances, and start helping my mother, who had very high hopes for me when she came for my graduation a few years ago. What am I doing wrong financially?

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Dominic Karanja, a financial planning and investment consultant.

Your financial situation is strained, but it can improve. The core problem is not simply low income or poor money management; it is that most of your salary is already committed before you receive it.

Your Immediate priority should be regaining control of your monthly cash flow.

Stop using new loans or borrowed money to cover expenses caused by earlier loans. Each time you borrow to close the gap, you may solve the short-term problem, but you create another repayment that makes the next month harder.

Unless you deliberately break this pattern, it can continue indefinitely. For now, commit to avoiding new mobile loans, salary advances, informal borrowing, and costly short-term credit unless you face a genuine emergency with no other solution.

Manage the debts strategically instead of simply paying whichever lender is pressing hardest. Get the current outstanding balance, settlement amount, interest rate, remaining repayment period, and early-settlement terms for the lenders.

Then speak with the lenders about restructuring, rescheduling, or settlement options. Because your deductions leave you with little to live on, lowering the monthly repayment burden is important.

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However, do not accept restructuring only because it reduces the instalment, as extending a loan can increase the total cost. The best option creates enough monthly relief while still helping you clear the debt within a reasonable time.

A key principle in your situation is to buy back your salary. If you cleared the Hela loan, for example, the Sh11,800 monthly deduction would be released, and your available income would rise from about Sh5,000 to nearly Sh16,800.

Clearing the Platinum loan would free another Sh8,300, potentially raising your available income to around Sh25,000. As each debt disappears, more of your salary becomes available for current needs and future goals.

Your failed business offers an important lesson, but it does not mean you cannot succeed financially. The key lesson is that future ventures should not be funded in a way that puts your entire salary at risk.

Before starting another business, first become debt-free or at least financially stable, build personal savings, and assess the opportunity carefully. Ideally, use money you can afford to lose instead of borrowing heavily against your employment income.

If you apply the lessons from your previous experience, it can help you make better decisions next time.

Living in police quarters and avoiding private rent gives you a valuable advantage, so use it intentionally to rebuild your finances. As your debts reduce, do not let the freed-up money go into lifestyle upgrades. Keep a reasonable budget and treat former loan repayments as money for your future.

Use the debt snowball method: once one loan is cleared, direct a considerable portion of that old instalment toward the next debt. This keeps the same money working against your debt and speeds up repayment instead of allowing spending to rise each time a loan ends.

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Your wish to support your mother is understandable, especially given the pride and expectations she had at your graduation. However, guilt or pressure should not lead you into choices that slow your recovery. At your current income level, a modest, sustainable contribution is wiser than giving so much that you must borrow again.

Once the debts are cleared, continue living modestly, especially while you still have police accommodation. Your first goal should be to build an emergency fund, starting with Sh50,000–Sh100,000 and eventually growing it to about six months of your living expenses. This fund will help you avoid costly borrowing when unexpected expenses arise.

After that, you can create a regular savings habit and begin directing part of your income toward retirement and long-term investments. Depending on your situation, suitable options may later include pension contributions, regulated money-market funds, government securities, SACCO savings, or other diversified long-term investments.

At 37, you still have many productive years ahead. Start by stopping new borrowing, restructuring where necessary, clearing existing debts, building an emergency fund, keeping your lifestyle controlled, supporting your family within your means, and then saving and investing consistently.

If you have any money problems, send us an email at mburusymonn@gmail.com.