Public economics

Finance

Sociology

Business

Poverty

Telephony

Sample (material)

Population

Consumption (sociology)

Social science

Economic growth

Mobile telephony

Welfare

Per capita

World Wide Web

Demography

Engineering

Financial services

Econometrics

Probit

Instrumental variable

Economics

Chemistry

Mobile phone

Financial inclusion

Computer science

Information and Communications Technology

Mobile radio

Market economy

Chromatography

Probit model

Telecommunications

Journal of African Business

The paper employs the multipurpose nature of mobile telephony to investigate its welfare implications using a large sample of households in Ghana. We use seemingly unrelated probit and instrumental variable procedure to test for two related issues: First, we investigate whether mobile telephony promotes pro-poor development by helping households to efficiently allocate consumption and navigate out of poverty. Second, we analyze whether access to a broad array of financial services enhances the capacity of households to live worthwhile lives. The results show that mobile penetration and financial inclusion significantly reduce the probability of a household becoming poor and increase per capita household consumption of food and non-food items. Our results show that the welfare benefits of mobile telephony and financial inclusion are not more pronounced in female-headed households. These insights serve as useful guide for government and other stakeholders who are looking for avenues to improve livelihoods.

Mobile Telephony, Financial Inclusion and Inclusive Growth