Institutional frames for financial inclusion of poor households in Sub-Saharan Africa

2016 ◽  
Vol 43 (11) ◽  
pp. 1096-1114 ◽  
Author(s):  
George Okello Candiya Bongomin ◽  
Joseph Mpeera Ntayi ◽  
John Munene
Keyword(s):  
Financial Services ◽  
Financial Inclusion ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Persistent Problem ◽  
Poor Households ◽  
The World ◽  
Sub Saharan

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine institutional frames for financial inclusion of poor households in a Sub-Saharan Africa context and provide policy implications in solving the persistent problem of limited inclusion of poor households into mainstream formal financial services in Uganda. Design/methodology/approach Cross-sectional research design was used in this study. Data were collected from a randomly selected sample of 200 poor households located in Mukono District. Statistical program for Social Scientists and Analysis of Moment Structures were used to generate results. Findings Results have revealed the presence of regulative, normative, and procedural and declarative cognitive institutional frames, which affect financial inclusion of poor households in rural rural Uganda. The findings and policy implications are discussed in detail in the paper. Originality/value This study parallels the World Bank Global Findex survey (2012) on general aspects of financial inclusion around the world. It examines frames, which structure behaviours and actions of poor households towards their financial decisions and choices in attempting to improve financial inclusion with a major focus on rural Uganda.

Turning on the township: financial inclusion in South Africa

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 420-446
Author(s):  
Louise Whittaker ◽  
Graunt Kruger
Keyword(s):  
Financial Services ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Financial Inclusion ◽  
Subject Position ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Strategic Actions ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Economic Engagement

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore practitioner and academic conceptualisations about what drives individuals (who are the target of financial inclusion efforts) to adopt and use financial services. It compares this with individual’s personal subjectivities to understand how the similarities and differences might contribute to problems in financial inclusion efforts. Design/methodology/approach To uncover such conceptualisations, a Foucauldian discourse analysis of three texts is conducted. Findings The analysis uncovers the ways in which financial subjects are produced. Important points of discontinuity are evident between texts, pointing to potential failures within financial inclusion constructs. Distilling aspects of continuity between texts shows up three kinds of subjects produced predicated on the site of economic engagement as owners of bodies, tangible property and intangible property. These subjects are shown to all share concerns with income and expense management. The analysis shows that subject positions and strategic actions (including the use of financial service providers) are mutually reinforcing, and that therefore financial subjects will engage only to the extent that the product or service enacts their subject position. With the financial subject as the starting point, it is possible to understand the use or rejection of particular financial products and services. Research limitations/implications Asset building is proposed as a field of activity not currently considered part of mainstream financial inclusion, questioning the terms on which individuals are to be financially “included”. Originality/value Approximately 2 billion people globally, and 66 per cent of adults in sub-Saharan Africa, are excluded from the formal financial system. While financial inclusion is considered beneficial, many projects face significant challenges. This suggests insufficient understanding of what drives individuals to adopt and use financial services. This paper makes a contribution by exploring the gap between academics, practitioners and individuals using a method that has not previously been applied in this field, and uncovering differences in understanding that have not previously been explored. The insights into financial inclusion in provided in this paper are original in the literature.

What determines financial inclusion in Sub-Saharan Africa?

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sydney Chikalipah
Keyword(s):  
International Development ◽  
World Bank ◽  
Financial Inclusion ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
The World ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Ssa Countries

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the determinants of financial inclusion (FI) in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Design/methodology/approach The paper uses the World Bank country-level data from 20 SSA countries for the year 2014. Findings The empirical findings in this study indicate that illiteracy is the major hindrance to FI in SSA. The findings provide useful information to government agencies and international development organisations. Also, the findings can help accelerate and strengthen FI strategies among SSA countries. Research limitations/implications Some countries were excluded from the final analysis due to lack of data. Practical implications In the last two decades, there has been renewed interest in fighting financial exclusion in Africa. Therefore, this study provide evidence which clearly shows that enhancing literacy levels in a country can immensely contribute towards building the financially inclusive societies in the SSA region. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to empirically test the determinants of FI in SSA using the World Bank FI data set. Furthermore, this is the first attempt to estimate the determinants of FI with a combined data of SSA countries.

Do microsavings stimulate financial performance of microfinance institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa?

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (5) ◽  
pp. 1072-1087 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sydney Chikalipah
Keyword(s):  
Financial Performance ◽  
Financial Services ◽  
Information Exchange ◽  
Empirical Relationship ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Microfinance Institutions ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sub Saharan

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the empirical relationship between microsavings and the financial performance of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Design/methodology/approach The approach in this paper is decidedly empirical, and employs data obtained from Microfinance Information eXchange (MIX). The data set consists of 350 microfinance MFIs domiciled in 36 Sub-Saharan African countries for the period covering 1998–2012. Findings The panel estimation results consistently show that there exists a negative and statistically significant relationship between microsavings and the financial performance of MFIs in SSA. This is perhaps surprising, albeit rational considering the exceedingly elevated operating expenses that ascend from mobilizing and managing microsavings, ceteris paribus, that could erode firm profitability. The paper draws policy implications from these important findings. Research limitations/implications Even though generalized method of moment estimation technique was employed and robustness checks, the issue of endogeneity cannot be eliminated entirely. Practical implications Microfinance industry is one of the fastest growing segments of the financial sector in SSA. The industry is increasingly becoming the core of financial inclusion in the region where two-thirds of the adult population lack access to formal financial services. Therefore, gaining an in-depth understanding of the role microsavings play in the financial performance of MFIs can contribute to the growth of the industry. Originality/value This study is timely considering the significant growth in the number of microsavings – there are currently twice as many microsavings accounts in SSA as there are microcredits. More importantly, based on 400 MFIs, that reported data to MIX in 2016, the total microsavings stood at about US$11bn against an aggregate loan portfolio of about US$10.5bn. The remarkable growth of microsavings in SSA, from less than US$100m in 2000 to US$11bn in 2016, is the main motivation of undertaking this study.

A comparison of global suicide terrorism by region before and after 9/11 terrorist attacks

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmet Guler ◽  
Mustafa Demir
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Interrupted Time Series ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Terrorist Attacks ◽  
Suicide Terrorism ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Global Terrorism Database

Purpose This study aims to examine the effect of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on suicide terrorism in different regions of the world and changes in the trends in suicide terrorism according to regions before and after 9/11. Design/methodology/approach Using the data obtained from the Global Terrorism Database from 1981 to 2019, the descriptive statistics were computed first and then, independent samples t-tests were run to compare the monthly mean percentage of suicide-terrorism incidents that occurred in each region between the pre-9/11 and the post-9/11 periods. Finally, to statistically assess the effect of the 9/11 attacks and changes in the trends for the dependent variables over time, monthly interrupted time-series analyzes were conducted. Findings The results of monthly interrupted time series analyzes showed that after the 9/11 attacks, the trends for suicide-terrorism rates decreased significantly in three regions including South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa and Europe, while the trend for suicide-terrorism rates increased significantly in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, no statistically significant changes in the trends in suicide-terrorism rates occurred in three regions including North America, East Asia and Central Asia and Southeast Asia before 9/11, during November 2001 or after 9/11. Originality/value This study indicates the critical importance of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in suicide terrorism and its impact on these events in different regions of the world. The research also provides some recommendations concerning the effectiveness of defensive and offensive counterterrorism policies against suicide terrorism.

Shadow economy in Africa: how relevant is financial inclusion?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Folorunsho M. Ajide
Keyword(s):  
Shadow Economy ◽  
Financial Inclusion ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Development Indicators ◽  
Panel Data Estimation ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Data Estimation ◽  
Toda And Yamamoto

Purpose This study aims to investigate the possible relationship between financial inclusion and shadow economy in selected African countries. Design/methodology/approach The study uses panel data estimation technique and Toda and Yamamoto causality approach. The data of selected African counties over a period of 2005–2015 are sourced from World Bank Development Indicators, International Monetary Fund International Financial statistics database and International Country Risk Guide. Findings The results show that financial inclusion reduces the size of shadow economy. The causality results show that there is a unidirectional causality moving from financial inclusion to shadow economy. The results demonstrate that a country with lower level of corruption and higher level of growth can benefit more in reducing the size of shadow economy through financial inclusion. Originality/value This study provides the first evidence of the link between financial inclusion and shadow economy from the Sub-Saharan Africa perspective. The study suggests that financial inclusion may be useful in affecting the size of shadow economy in Africa.

Financial well-being of customer-to-customer co-creation experience: a comparative qualitative focus group study of savings/credit groups

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nkosinathi Sithole ◽  
Gillian Sullivan Mort ◽  
Clare D'Souza
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Financial Services ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Experiences ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Focus Group Study ◽  
Financial Capability ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
Sub Saharan

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the effects of the customer-to-customer co-creation experiences of savings/credit groups in the African context and how savings/credit groups influence financial capability and enhance financial well-being.Design/methodology/approachUsing purposive sampling, a study of a total of 18 focus groups was conducted in sub-Saharan Africa. Nine urban-based savings/credit groups were drawn from across South Africa and additional nine, rural-based savings/credit groups were studied in the Monduli district of Tanzania.FindingsFindings demonstrate that the African philosophy of Ubuntu, which promotes customer-to-customer interaction, is the cornerstone of the customer-to-customer co-creation experience. Ubuntu philosophical principles were found to influence the dialogue, access, risk and transparency model of co-creation and customer-dominant logic. The results show further that customer-to-customer co-creation experience positively influences the cognitive, financial, personal and social experiences of members. Specifically, it was found that cognitive and financial experiences positively influence financial satisfaction, financial self-esteem, financial self-efficacy and financial capability, all of which enhance financial well-being. In addition, personal and social experiences positively influence equality, self-confidence, entrepreneurial skills and motivation that in turn enhance social well-being.Research limitations/implicationsThis study has implications for many different stakeholders concerned with the financial inclusion of low-income consumers, particularly in the southern part of Africa.Originality/valueTo the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to explore the effects of customer-to-customer co-creation experiences in traditional financial services settings in order to understand how these indigenous financial services influence the financial capability and financial well-being of co-creation members.

Poverty prevalence and negative spillovers in Sub-Saharan Africa: a focus on extreme and multidimensional poverty in the region

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Olumide Olaoye ◽  
Cleopatra Oluseye Ibukun ◽  
Mustafa Razzak ◽  
Naftaly Mose
Keyword(s):  
Generalized Method Of Moments ◽  
Spillover Effect ◽  
Multidimensional Poverty ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Spatial Error ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
High Level

PurposeThe paper analyses the prevalence of extreme and multidimensional poverty in line with the sustainable development agenda. In addition, the paper examines the drivers of extreme poverty while accounting for the potential spillover effect of poverty in the region.Design/methodology/approachThe study adopts the pooled OLS with Discroll-Kraay robust standard errors to control for cross-sectional dependence. In addition, given the strong potential for endogeneity of poverty index, the authors also employ the generalized method of moments (GMM), which accounts for simultaneity and endogeneity problems, and the spatial error and lag models to control for all forms of spatial and temporal dependence since the factors that affect poverty disperse across borders.FindingsThe study finds that in addition to the traditional drivers of poverty (unemployment, low per capita GDP growth and public debt), poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa is a symptom of a deeper structural problem (lack of access to water and sanitation, high level of corruption and low level of financial development, and frequent economic busts). Likewise, the results from the spatial econometric specification show, consistently across all the specifications, that there is a substantial spillover effect of poverty across the region.Originality/valueThe main novelty of the paper is that the authors investigate the “economic shrinkage hypothesis,” and examined the potential negative spillover effect of poverty in the region.

scholarly journals The state of business sustainability reporting in sub-Saharan Africa: an agenda for policy and practice

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol A. Tilt ◽  
Wei Qian ◽  
Sanjaya Kuruppu ◽  
Dinithi Dissanayake
Keyword(s):  
Sustainability Reporting ◽  
New Institutional Economics ◽  
The State ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Reporting Practices ◽  
Sub Saharan

Purpose Developing countries experience their own social, political and environmental issues, but surprisingly limited papers have examined sustainability reporting in these regions, notably in sub-Saharan Africa. To fill this gap and understand the state of sustainability reporting in sub-Saharan Africa, this paper aims to investigate the current state of reporting, identifies the major motivations and barriers for reporting and suggests an agenda of future issues that need to be considered by firms, policymakers and academics. Design/methodology/approach This paper includes analysis of reporting practices in 48 sub-Saharan African countries using the lens of New Institutional Economics. It comprises three phases of data collection and analysis: presentation of overall reporting data collected and provided by Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). analysis of stand-alone sustainability reports using qualitative data analysis and interviews with key report producers. Findings The analysis identifies key issues that companies in selected sub-Saharan African countries are grappling within their contexts. There are significant barriers to reporting but institutional mechanisms, such as voluntary reporting frameworks, provide an important bridge between embedding informal norms and changes to regulatory requirements. These are important for the development of better governance and accountability mechanisms. Research limitations/implications Findings have important implications for policymakers and institutions such as GRI in terms of regulation, outreach and localised training. More broadly, global bodies such as GRI and IIRC in a developing country context may require more local knowledge and support. Limitations include limited data availability, particularly for interviews, which means that these results are preliminary and provide a basis for further work. Practical implications The findings of this paper contribute to the knowledge of sustainability reporting in this region, and provide some policy implications for firms, governments and regulators. Originality/value This paper is one of only a handful looking at the emerging phenomenon of sustainability reporting in sub-Saharan African countries.

Financial Inclusion and Gender Inequality Reduction: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa

2019 ◽  
Vol 67 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 367-372
Author(s):  
Sylvester Ohiomu ◽  
Evelyn Nwamaka Ogbeide-Osaretin
Keyword(s):  
Gender Inequality ◽  
Financial Services ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Estimation Method ◽  
Financial Inclusion ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Government ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Impact

Reduced inequality and gender equality are parts of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) towards global development, but the financial sector appears daunted in respect of financial inclusion for these noble goals. Concerns are more on gender inequality in the area of full utilisation of financial and human resources. Hence, this study investigated the impact of financial inclusion on gender inequality in sub-Saharan Africa. The study employed the generalised method of moments (GMM) estimation method on panel data on some countries in sub-Saharan Africa. The result of the study revealed that financial inclusion substantially reduced gender inequality. Financial inclusion access was found to drive down gender inequality more than usage. Female educational levels were found to have a substantial but negative impact on gender inequality. This study recommends that there is a need for an increase in commercial bank branches to increase accessibility to financial services. The government should increase its expenditure, and this should be channelled towards financial development and higher levels of education for females to improve financial literacy.

Does economic freedom improve health outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa?

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (12) ◽  
pp. 1633-1649
Author(s):  
Anand Sharma
Keyword(s):  
Mortality Rate ◽  
Life Expectancy ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Economic Freedom ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the impact of economic freedom on four key health indicators (namely, life expectancy, infant mortality rate, under-five mortality rate and neonatal mortality rate) by using a panel dataset of 34 sub-Saharan African countries from 2005 to 2016.Design/methodology/approachThe study obtains data from the World Development Indicators (WDI) of the World Bank and the Fraser Institute. It uses fixed effects regression to estimate the effect of economic freedom on health outcomes and attempts to resolve the endogeneity problems by using two-stage least squares regression (2SLS).FindingsThe results indicate a favourable impact of economic freedom on health outcomes. That is, higher levels of economic freedom reduce mortality rates and increase life expectancy in sub-Saharan Africa. All areas of economic freedom, except government size, have a significant and positive effect on health outcomes.Research limitations/implicationsThis study analyses the effect of economic freedom on health at a broad level. Country-specific studies at a disaggregated level may provide additional information about the impact of economic freedom on health outcomes. Also, this study does not control for some important variables such as education, income inequality and foreign aid due to data constraints.Practical implicationsThe findings suggest that sub-Saharan African countries should focus on enhancing the quality of economic institutions to improve their health outcomes. This may include policy reforms that support a robust legal system, protect property rights, promote free trade and stabilise the macroeconomic environment. In addition, policies that raise urbanisation, increase immunisation and lower the incidence of HIV are likely to produce a substantial improvement in health outcomes.Originality/valueExtant economic freedom-health literature does not focus on endogeneity problems. This study uses instrumental variables regression to deal with endogeneity. Also, this is one of the first attempts to empirically investigate the relationship between economic freedom and health in the case of sub-Saharan Africa.

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