MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Survey: Nigeria Falls Behind South Africa, Kenya, Botswana in Financial Access

The “Access to Financial Services in Nigeria 2010 Survey” conducted by Enhancing Financial Innovation & Access (EFInA), a nonprofit financial sector development organization funded by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) and the US-based Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, indicates that Nigeria lags behind South Africa, Botswana and Kenya in access to finance. According to the report, 46 percent of Nigerians are financially excluded, compared to 26 percent of South Africans, 33 percent of Kenyans and 33 percent of Botswanans.

Based on EFInA’s research, 30 percent of adult Nigerians – or 25.4 million people – have a bank account and 67 percent of the adult population – or 56.9 million people – has never been “banked.” Factors identified as most likely to encourage individuals to open bank accounts are increased employment, locating bank services in closer proximity to residences and workplaces and better communication regarding the benefits of having a bank account.

EFInA was established in 2007 to promote financial sector development and financial inclusion in Nigeria.

By Carol Kim, Research Associate

About Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation: Based in the US, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provides grants to organizations in approximately 100 countries with the aim of enhancing health care, reducing poverty and expanding access to education and information technology. As of September 2009, its endowment totaled USD 34 billion. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Financial Services for the Poor initiative focuses on providing people with secure places to save money. To support this initiative, the foundation works with financial organizations to increase access to technology (point-of-sales devices, automated teller machines, etc.) and to forge partnerships among mobile phone companies, banks and microfinance institutions. It also supports the startup and growth of new banks in “difficult markets”.

Sources and Additional Resources:

allAfrica.com: “Nigeria: Access to Banks – Country Lags Behind Botswana, Kenya”, August 2011, http://allafrica.com/stories/201108011702.html

MicroCapital.org: “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Articles From UK’s The Guardian, Nigeria’s Business Daily Online Praise Potential of Mobile Banking, Microfinance Across Africa”, August 8, 2011, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-articles-from-uk’s-the-guardian-nigeria’s-business-daily-online-praise-potential-of-mobile-banking-microfinance-across-africa/

MicroCapital’s Universe Profile: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation,  https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Bill+and+Melinda+Gates+Foundation index.php?page=United+Nations+Capital+Development+Fund+%28UNCDF%29

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