Browsing by Author "Kodom, M."
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Item Financial Inclusion Via Mobile Money Services in Ghana: Drivers and the Role of Regulation(University of Ghana, 2019-07) Kodom, M.Mobile money (MoMo) has witnessed significant increase in adoption since its inception into the Ghanaian financial market in 2009. Available statistics by the Bank of Ghana show that between 2012 and 2017, the number of registered MoMo customers increased by 534%, and active MoMo customers increased by 3,119%. With this performance, it is expected that MoMo will drive financial inclusion by not only providing users with a service to make money transfers but graduating them to use other forms of formal financial services such as savings, credit and insurance. However, little evidence currently exists on the relationship between MoMo adoption and the use of formal financial services nor on the role of Central Bank regulation in facilitating MoMo deployment and adoption. For financial inclusion purposes, it is also imperative to understand the factors driving or inhibiting MoMo adoption among groups who are mostly financially excluded. This study was conducted to examine the conditions facilitating the adoption of MoMo as a tool for achieving financial inclusion. The specific objectives were to: examine the drivers of MoMo adoption and how they vary with the demographic characteristics of the individual; assess the extent to which MoMo serves as a gateway to the use of formal financial services; and explore the role of Central Bank regulation in facilitating financial inclusion in Ghana. The 2014 and 2017 World Bank Global Findex survey datasets were used. In addition to these secondary data, primary data were collected using mixed methods. A survey was conducted across the country to gather information on the drivers of MoMo adoption. In addition, in-depth interviews with five institutions were conducted to assess the role of regulation in facilitating financial inclusion in Ghana. The results of probit analyses showed that the main drivers of MoMo adoption were perceived usefulness, social influence and cost of transaction. Perceived usefulness and social influence had a positive effect on adoption, but cost of transaction reduced the probability of adoption. These factors were found to vary significantly with gender, age, education and the locality of residence of respondents. The results of a recursive bivariate probit regression analysis also showed that MoMo serves as a gateway to the ownership of an account at a financial institution. It also enhances chances of saving, but only through the MoMo wallet, not in formal financial institutions. MoMo users were more likely to obtain credit, but not from a formal financial institution. Information from the interviews revealed that a change in the initial Central Bank regulation from a restrictive bank-led approach to a liberal telco-led approach was key to bringing clarity and to providing service providers with an incentive which encouraged them to make the necessary investments critical for enhancing growth in the MoMo financial market. Despite the remarkable performance of MoMo in the financial market, users continue to face network challenges. In addition, the persistent incidents of fraud and other abuses in the system inhibit adoption and use. Bank of Ghana should take steps to identify and understand the trends and dynamics of these fraud cases in order to make policies to contain them. The activities of the telcos and their agents need to be periodically audited to ensure that they comply with the regulations. Reduction of the 2% service charges on MoMo transactions would make the service more affordable to the previous excluded. Service providers should deploy targeted services that meet the needs of the poor and the excluded to enhance financial inclusion.Item Financial Inclusion Via Mobile Money Services in Ghana: Drivers and the Role of Regulation(University of Ghana, 2019-07) Kodom, M.Mobile money (MoMo) has witnessed significant increase in adoption since its inception into the Ghanaian financial market in 2009. Available statistics by the Bank of Ghana show that between 2012 and 2017, the number of registered MoMo customers increased by 534%, and active MoMo customers increased by 3,119%. With this performance, it is expected that MoMo will drive financial inclusion by not only providing users with a service to make money transfers but graduating them to use other forms of formal financial services such as savings, credit and insurance. However, little evidence currently exists on the relationship between MoMo adoption and the use of formal financial services nor on the role of Central Bank regulation in facilitating MoMo deployment and adoption. For financial inclusion purposes, it is also imperative to understand the factors driving or inhibiting MoMo adoption among groups who are mostly financially excluded. This study was conducted to examine the conditions facilitating the adoption of MoMo as a tool for achieving financial inclusion. The specific objectives were to: examine the drivers of MoMo adoption and how they vary with the demographic characteristics of the individual; assess the extent to which MoMo serves as a gateway to the use of formal financial services; and explore the role of Central Bank regulation in facilitating financial inclusion in Ghana. The 2014 and 2017 World Bank Global Findex survey datasets were used. In addition to these secondary data, primary data were collected using mixed methods. A survey was conducted across the country to gather information on the drivers of MoMo adoption. In addition, in-depth interviews with five institutions were conducted to assess the role of regulation in facilitating financial inclusion in Ghana. The results of probit analyses showed that the main drivers of MoMo adoption were perceived usefulness, social influence and cost of transaction. Perceived usefulness and social influence had a positive effect on adoption, but cost of transaction reduced the probability of adoption. These factors were found to vary significantly with gender, age, education and the locality of residence of respondents. The results of a recursive bivariate probit regression analysis also showed that MoMo serves as a gateway to the ownership of an account at a financial institution. It also enhances chances of saving, but only through the MoMo wallet, not in formal financial institutions. MoMo users were more likely to obtain credit, but not from a formal financial institution. Information from the interviews revealed that a change in the initial Central Bank regulation from a restrictive bank-led approach to a liberal telco-led approach was key to bringing clarity and to providing service providers with an incentive which encouraged them to make the necessary investments critical for enhancing growth in the MoMo financial market. Despite the remarkable performance of MoMo in the financial market, users continue to face network challenges. In addition, the persistent incidents of fraud and other abuses in the system inhibit adoption and use. Bank of Ghana should take steps to identify and understand the trends and dynamics of these fraud cases in order to make policies to contain them. The activities of the telcos and their agents need to be periodically audited to ensure that they comply with the regulations. Reduction of the 2% service charges on MoMo transactions would make the service more affordable to the previous excluded. Service providers should deploy targeted services that meet the needs of the poor and the excluded to enhance financial inclusion.Item Mobile money: a gateway to achieving financial inclusion in Ghana(Enterprise Development and Microfinance, 2022) Kodom, M.; Steel, W.F.; Ackah, C.; Bokpin, G.A.While emerging studies on mobile financial inclusion have focused on the factors driving the adoption of mobile money, little evidence exists on how the service is facilitating the use of formal financial services. Using the World Bank Findex data, we estimate the effect of mobile money adoption on the use of formal accounts, savings, and credit in Ghana. The results of the recursive bivariate probit analysis showed a significant symbiotic relationship between mobile money adoption and the probability of operating a formal account. Mobile money adoption has a positive effect on savings and access to credit but does not affect the avenues to savings and obtaining credit, respectively. Mobile money users save in their wallet and obtain microcredit through the mobile money platform but not through formal channels. These findings reinforce the hypothesis that mobile money is the surest financial tool for achieving universal financial inclusion in developing countries.Item Quality Healthcare Service Assessment under Ghana’s National Health Insurance Scheme(Journal of Asian and African Studies, 2019-02) Kodom, M.; Owusu, A.Y.; Kodom, P.N.B.Ghana implemented the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in 2005 with the intention of providing residents with quality affordable healthcare. Over the past few years, concerns have been raised about the quality of healthcare clients receive. This study assesses the experiences of NHIS subscribers with the quality of care they receive under the scheme by both private and public hospitals. The results from the 56 interviews show that the majority of the subscribers were dissatisfied with the overall quality of healthcare they received in both private and public hospital because of the long waiting hours, the poor attitude of nurses and the demand for payment of additional money. Even though clients who visited the private hospital paid for all services, excluding consultation, their level of satisfaction with the quality of healthcare was relatively higher than those who visited the public hospital. The paper concludes that NHIS clients do not receive the quality of healthcare the scheme promised, and this has implications for premium renewals and health-seeking behaviour.