Publication: Mobile Money and Investment by Women Businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa
Abstract
This study connects two important
findings in Sub-Saharan Africa. First, digital technologies
such as mobile money have become widespread and have
increased investment by businesses, especially in East
Africa. Second, women-owned business in the region
significantly lag their male counterparts in capital
investments. Using data for 16 Sub-Saharan African
economies, the study connects the two findings by exploring
whether mobile money use by women-owned firms increases
their investment. The findings indicate that the positive
relationship between mobile money use and investment is
largely driven by women-owned firms and is statistically
insignificant for men-owned firms. Potential channels of
these effects are explored. Women-owned firms that use
mobile money to transact with suppliers are more likely to
invest. Mobile money also seems to facilitate greater
provision of customer credit and generally greater demand
for more credit by women-owned firms. Such patterns are not
observed for men-owned firms.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“Islam, Asif; Muzi, Silvia. 2020. Mobile Money and Investment by Women Businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa. Policy Research Working Paper;No. 9338. © World Bank, Washington, DC. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/34256 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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