DETERMINANTS OF SMALLHOLDER FARMERS’ ACCESS TO MOBILE PHONE BASED MONEY TRANSFER SERVICES – EVIDENCE FROM VOLTA REGION OF GHANA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22159/ijags.2021.v9i3.41520Keywords:
Agricultural financial service, Ghana, Mobile money, Smallholder farmers, Logit model, Agricultural Information and Communication Technology, Coronavirus disease-19Abstract
Objective: Smallholder farmers’ access to Mobile Phone Based Money Transfer Services in Akatsi North District of Volta Region of Ghana under the Planting for Food and Jobs Programme.
Methods: Primary data were collected from 300 farmers in beneficiary districts while secondary data were gathered from literatures and various actors. A multi-stage sampling technique was used in selecting respondents for the study. The first stage involved selecting ten communities that benefited from the planting for food and jobs program in the Akatsi North district, while the second stage considered randomly selecting 30 beneficiary farmers in each community. Obtained data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences and STATA-11 software. Results were presented in the form of descriptive statistics, cross tabulation, and Logit regression model.
Results: Majority of respondents (74%) do not use Mobile Phone Based Money Transfer platform for any agricultural transaction. Is only 26% of the respondents that use the mobile money platform for their agribusiness activities. Out of the nine explanatory variables included in the Logit regression model, six of them were significant at p<0.01, p<0.05, and p<0.1. Significant factors include: Educational level of households, age, major occupation, accessibility of mobile money service provider, convenience to respondent, trust of the system, and availability of mobile money service.
Conclusions: The availability and accessibility of Mobile Phone Based Money financial services among smallholder farmers is key to achieving competitive global business.
References
Ghana Statistical Service: Ghana Census of Agriculture; 2017. Available from: https://www.statsghana.gov.gh/headlines.php?slidelocks=MTk 3OTM1NjUyOC4yMzc1/headlines/s41544nq09. [Last accessed on 2021 Apr 15].
GSMA. Country Overview; Ghana Driving Mobile-enabled Digital Transformation. Vol. 5. GSMA; 2017. p. 6-8.
Bank of Ghana. Mobile Financial Services in Ghana, Technical Paper Presented at Sub-Regional Workshop on Mobile Money in West Africa. Available from: https://www.theigc.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/ Ghana.pdf. [Last accessed on 2021 Apr 15].
Bank of Rwanda. Impact of Mobile Money on the Payment System in Ghana: An Econometric Analysis. Vol. 4. Bank of Rwanda; 2017. p. 2.
Amedi M, Dumayiri M, Mohammed AS. Loan repayment and its implication on agricultural financing in ghana-the case of MiDA agriculture program. Int J Agric Manag Dev 2019;9:391-408.
Asongu SA, Nwachukwu JC. The role of governance in mobile phones for inclusive human development in Sub-Saharan Africa. Technovation 2016;55:1-13.
Au YA, Kauffman RJ. The economics of mobile payments: Understanding stakeholder issues for an emerging financial technology application. Electron Commerce Res Appl 2008;7:141-64.
Hughes L. M-PESA: Mobile money for the “unbanked” turning cellphones into 24-hour tellers in Kenya. Innov Technol Gov Glob 2007;2:63-81.
Diniz EH, de Albuquerque PJ, Cernev AK. Mobile money and payment: A literature review based on academic and practitioner-oriented publications. GlobDev 2011;4:1-3.
Long JS. Regression Models for Categorical and Limited Dependent Variables. Advanced Quantitative Techniques in the Social Sciences No. 7. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 1997. p. 10-15.
Akudugu MA, Guo E, Dadzie SK. Adoption of modern agricultural production technologies by farm households in Ghana: What factors influence their decisions? J Biol Agric Healthc 2012;2:1-13.
Kudugu MA. Estimation of the determinants of credit demand by farmers and supply by rural banks in Ghana’s Upper East Region. Asian J Agric Rural Dev 2012;2:189-200.
Ololade RA, Olagunju FI. Determinants of access to credit among rural farmers in Oyo State, Nigeria. Glob J Sci Front Res Agric Vet Sci 2013;13:17-22.
Dzadze P, Mensah JO, Aidoo R, Nurah GK. Factors determining access to formal credit in Ghana: A case study of smallholder farmers in the Abura-Asebu Kwamankese district of Central Region of Ghana. J Dev Agric Econ 2012;4:416-23.
Kuwornu JK, Ohene-Ntow ID, Asuming-Brempong S. Agricultural credit allocation and constraint analyses of selected maize farmers in Ghana. Br J Econ Manag Trade 2012;2:353-74.
Gencer M. The mobile money movement: Catalyst to jump-start emerging markets. Innov Technol Gov Glob 2011;6: 101-17.
Duncombe R. An evidence-based framework for assessing the potential of mobile finance in sub-Saharan Africa. J Mod Afr Stud 2012;50: 369-95.
Khraim HS, Al Shoubaki YE, Khraim AS. Factors affecting Jordanian consumers adoption of mobile banking services. Int J Bus Soc Sci 2011;2:1-2.
GSMA. Market Size and Opportunity in Digitising Payments in Agricultural Value Chains. Vol. 30. London, United Kingdom: GSMA; 2016. p. 1-9.
Hinson RE. Banking the poor: The role of mobiles. J Financ Serv Market 2011;15:320-33.
Davis D, Venkatesh V. A theoretical extension of the technology acceptance model. Manag Sci 2000;46:186-204.
Jack W, Suri T. Mobile money: The economics of M-PESA (No. w16721). Natl Bureau Econ Res 2011;18:161–86.
Banstola A. Prospects and challenges of E-banking in Nepal. J Nepalese Bus Stud 2007;4:96-104.
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
