Is Mobile Money Changing Rural Africa? Evidence from a Field Experiment: working paper

This study follows the introduction of mobile money for the first time in rural villages of Mozambique

From:
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Published
31 May 2023
Country:
Mozambique
Document Type:
Working Paper
Theme:
Economic Growth
Authors:
Batista, C., Vicente, P. C.

Abstract

Rural areas in Sub-Saharan Africa are typically underserved by financial services. Mobile money brings a substantial reduction in the transaction costs of remittances. We follow the introduction of mobile money for the first time in rural villages of Mozambique using a randomized field experiment. We find that mobile money increased migration out of these villages, where we observe lower agricultural activity and investment. At the same time, remittances received and welfare of rural households increased, particularly when facing geo-referenced village-level floods and household-level idiosyncratic shocks. Our work suggests that mobile money can accelerate urbanization and structural change in Sub-Saharan Africa.

This research is part of the G2LM Gender, Growth and Labour Markets in Low-Income Countries programme

Citation

Batista, C., & Vicente, P. C. (2023). “Is Mobile Money Changing Rural Africa? Evidence from a Field Experiment”. G2LM LIC Working Paper No. 71

Is Mobile Money Changing Rural Africa? Evidence from a Field Experiment

Updates to this page

Published 31 May 2023
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