International Conference

Making Digital Finance Work for Women / 1

21-22 June 2023

International Conference

C

Welcome Message

Dr Imran Matin | Executive Director of BIGD

Digital financial services (DFS) hold the potential to advance the economic empowerment of women. In Bangladesh, microfinance has played a vital role in the financial inclusion of women, a catalyst for their empowerment. With the emergence of DFS, new possibilities and questions are arising—now is the time to generate strategies to unleash their power to spark possibilities and positive change for women.

Welcome to BIGD’s international conference,

“Making Digital Finance Work for Women.” BIGD is committed to leveraging DFS to empower women in the Global South. We believe rigorous research- based evidence and insights can play a powerful role in this agenda. This is what BIGD’s WEE- DiFine Initiative focuses on. WEE-DiFine supports rigorous quantitative, qualitative, and mixed

methods research studies that examine the causal links between digital financial services (DFS) and women’s economic empowerment (WEE) in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Southeast Asia.

This conference is packed with high-quality research presentations and opportunities for engaging discussion. The event also features a poster presentation exhibition that showcases innovative ideas regarding DFS and WEE. I invite you to immerse yourself in cutting-edge research and innovative solutions that demonstrate the transformative power of DFS to improve women’s lives across the Global South. Join us on this journey of knowledge sharing, collaboration, and empowerment. Together, we can make digital finance work for women!

Photo: Zehad Al Mehedi, BIGD

BRAC Institute of Governance and Development

BRAC Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD) is a prominent Southern social science research and academic institute. BIGD is part of Brac University—a leading Bangladeshi private university with a historically strong social commitment—and the larger BRAC family, which includes the largest and one of the most effective international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) in the world, based in Bangladesh.

We conduct rigorous, multi-method social science research, grounded in developing country operations, on a range of social and economic issues to promote practical, time-sensitive innovations for tackling governance and development challenges. Our research spans innovations taking place in government, non-profit, and private sectors for improving lives.

The independent yet close working relationship with BRAC allows BIGD to do extensive field research on BRAC’s innovations and programs at scale across the Global South, a rather unique capacity to bridge the world of knowledge and practice.

Thus, we are uniquely positioned to lead the agenda of decolonizing knowledge from the Global South. We aim to chart the unique pathways of development in the region by influencing policies and practices and by participating in global knowledge politics using deep contextual, on-the- ground learning combined with academic approaches of global standards.

The WEE-DiFine Initiative

Women’s Economic Empowerment and Digital Finance (WEE-DiFine) is a multi-year research initiative of BIGD. It is one of the BIGD initiatives that aims to build equal partnership and establish a strong Southern voice in the global policy discourse.

WEE-DiFine was launched with the generous support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

WEE-DiFine supports rigorous quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods research studies that examine the causal links between digital financial services (DFS) and women’s economic empowerment (WEE) in the Global South. Presently, WEE-DiFine is supporting 18 projects spanning nine countries in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

The WEE-DiFine Initiative has several distinctive features. First, it is a unique research initiative based in the Global South that values international standards, cost-effectiveness, and local capacity building. Second, the initiative actively supports research teams in preparing competitive proposals by offering extensive resources, including

personalized, one-on-one coaching and incubation of high-potential studies. Finally, the initiative seeks to level the playing field for often excluded principal investigators (PIs), including those who are in the early stages of their careers or based in the Global South. WEE-DiFine prioritizes the inclusion of academics from the Global South in its review process and considers cost structures by context.

“Making Digital Finance Work for Women” is the first conference focused on disseminating findings from WEE-DiFine’s portfolio. WEE-DiFine will release its fourth request for proposals in 2023, which will focus on causal mechanisms that are currently underrepresented in its portfolio.

Photo: Climate Bangladesh by IMF /K M Asad, made available by CC by-ND 2.0

Pathways to Women’s Economic Empowerment Through Digital Finance

The WEE-DiFine Initiative White Paper

¹

WEE-DiFine’s white paper, Evidence of Digital Financial Services Impacting Women’s Economic Empowerment:

What Explains the Impacts and What Is Left to Learn, lays the academic foundation for the initiative. The white paper presents a conceptual framework to explore the causal mechanisms linking women’s economic empowerment (WEE) and digital financial services (DFS), reviews the current empirical evidence on each of these mechanisms, identifies challenges observed in interpreting the evidence, and highlights a set of priority questions that cut across the different research areas to be explored in the WEE-DiFine Initiative.

The white paper’s conceptual framework focuses on two broad categories of mechanisms through which DFS can enhance WEE. First, DFS can improve a woman’s outside options and, thus, her bargaining power. Second, DFS can increase a woman’s ability to enact her preferences in other ways, without altering her outside options.

Economic empowerment of women through DFS can take place through a variety of pathways, several of which are described below.

y Addressing cultural constraints: Digital transactions can allow women to access financial services within cultural constraints on mobility. These transactions also reduce safety concerns related to women

1 Evidence of Digital Financial Services Impacting Women’s Economic Empowerment: What Explains the Impacts and What Is Left to Learn was authored by Seth Garz, Rachel Heath, Elijah Kipchumba, and Munshi Sulaiman. Please find the full white paper at https://

bigd.bracu.ac.bd/all-projects/womens-economic-empowerment-and-digital-finance-wee-difine/about-wee-difine#TheWhitePaper carrying cash and may empower them to access loans and participate in market activities.

y Improving the efficiency of accessing financial services: Digital accounts can reduce the time associated with account registration and use, potentially freeing up women’s time for economic activities. DFS can also increase the velocity of personal transfers and diversity in sources of finance.

y Enabling service providers to better target female clients: Digital accounts may help reduce systematic discrimination, both cultural and statistical, against lending to women. Digital accounts can also provide an opportunity for low-cost credit screening and monitoring of female borrowers who lack credit histories.

y Increasing women’s bargaining power: Individual registration and directed payments through DFS can increase “outside options” in compliance with gender norms. As such, these mechanisms can enhance a woman’s bargaining power over financial and non- financial decisions related to leaving the house, expenditure and consumption choices, and borrowing decisions.

y Ability to enact a woman’s preferences: DFS can increase a woman’s ability to enact her own preferences, for example, by enhancing privacy regarding her finances.

Keynote 1 | Results From the Global Findex Database 2021 Presented by Leora Klapper

Leora Klapper is a Lead Economist in the Development Research Group at the World Bank. She is a founder of the Global Findex Database, co-editor of the World Bank Economic Review, and was Director of the 2022 World Development Report Finance for an Equitable Recovery. She has published widely in refereed journals on corporate and household finance, fintech, banking, and entrepreneurship. Her current research studies the impact of digital financial services, especially for women. Previously, she worked at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and Salomon Smith Barney. Klapper holds a PhD in Financial Economics from New York University Stern School of Business.

DAY ONE

Keynote 2 | A Critical Global Overview of the Process of Digitization of Microfinance Presented by Timothy Ogden

Timothy Ogden is the Managing Director of the Financial Access Initiative (FAI) at New York University’s Wagner Graduate School. He coordinates FAI’s research, communications, and operations. His previous work experience encompasses the private and nonprofit sectors.

Prior to joining FAI, he was the Chief Knowledge Officer at Geneva Global, Inc., an international philanthropy advisory company, and founding editor of Gartner Press. He founded and currently leads Sona Partners, a thought leadership communications firm, where he has helped develop more than 20 books for major publishers. Ogden is co-author of Toyota Under Fire, and author of Experimental Conversations, a collection of interviews with economists conducting field experiments on poverty alleviation interventions. He also serves as chairman of GiveWell, and is a senior fellow of the Aspen Institute’s Economic Opportunities Program and Financial Security Program.

Photo: MicroSave Consulting

Making Digital Finance Work for Women

Featured Presentations

Session 4 | A Woman’s DFS Experience

Digital Onboarding Challenges in Bangladesh

Principal investigators: Shahaduz Zaman, University of Sussex; Faruq Hossain, BIGD, Brac University;

and Jumana Asrar, BIGD, Brac University

Implementation partners: BRAC Institute of Governance and Development and Quicksand Design Studio Private Limited

Countries: Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, and Uganda

Abstract

The realization of benefits associated with digital financial services (DFS), particularly for women in countries like Bangladesh, remains a persistent challenge. Women’s limited digital and financial literacy, compounded by the influence of cultural norms, religious beliefs, and social values, necessitates a holistic socio-cultural understanding of their experiences with DFS. This anthropological investigation delves into the intricate dynamics of women’s access to DFS to identify the primary barriers encountered along their DFS journey. The study illuminates these barriers and proposes pertinent measures for service providers and other stakeholders to facilitate a smoother transition for women into the realm of DFS.

Key findings

y Women exhibit a lower inclination than men to sign up for digital financial accounts.

y Existing collective relationships often shape the management of digital accounts, especially amongst female users. For example, women frequently share the PINs of their digital accounts with others, especially husbands.

y Due to concerns regarding security, privacy, and time constraints, women tend to withdraw the entirety of available cash at a given point in time.

Unpacking the Digital Behaviour of the Lives of Women Businesses Owners in Bangladesh

Insights From a Diaries Research

Principal investigators: Rahul Chatterjee, MicroSave Consulting; and Akhand J Tiwari, MicroSave Consulting Implementation partner: Insight Metrics Bangladesh

Country: Bangladesh

Abstract

To date, the empirical record lacks a comprehensive understanding of the life experiences of women business owners in Bangladesh. MicroSave Consulting’s Women’s Business Diaries research aims to bridge this knowledge gap. This study identifies various segments of digital users and examines the factors that drive their digital behaviours, especially the use of digital financial services (DFS). The research highlights the importance of unpacking the multifaceted lives of women business owners. Additionally, it provides valuable grassroots evidence to service providers and policymakers on how to improve financial service design for women entrepreneurs.

Session 5 | Wage Digitization and Women’s Economic Empowerment

Financial Inclusion and Wage Digitization for Women in Bangladesh Reality, Challenges, and Strategy

Principal investigator: Khondoker Shakhawat Ali, Unnayan Sammanny and BIGD, Brac University Country: Bangladesh

Abstract

Bangladesh has prioritized inclusive finance for nearly a decade, focusing on financial inclusion and wage digitization for women. The HERfinance project exemplifies this effort by digitizing wage payments for women using platforms like bKash and Rocket. However, as this paper highlights, challenges arise in implementing wage digitization initiatives effectively, particularly in the informal economy where employment contracts and wage structures are lacking. Socio-cultural barriers, limited digital literacy, and concerns about privacy and security also hinder women’s access to digital financial services (DFS). To overcome these challenges, a comprehensive strategy involving government agencies, financial institutions, civil society organizations, and stakeholders is necessary. This strategy, the paper argues, should include awareness and education, infrastructure development, tailored financial products, stakeholder collaboration, and policy support. Ultimately, enhancing financial

inclusion and wage digitization can contribute to women’s economic empowerment (WEE) and overall socio- economic development in Bangladesh.

Empowering Poor Urban Women in Bangladesh Through Digital Financial Services

Does Wage Payment via Mobile Money Translate Into Economic Empowerment?

Principal investigators: Zaki Wahhaj, University of Kent, Canterbury; and Maliha Rahanaz, University of Kent, Canterbury and Brac University

Implementation partners: HelloTask and Data Analysis and Technical Assistance (DATA) Country: Bangladesh

WEE-DiFine thematic areas: Access to finance; transaction costs; privacy

Abstract

In Bangladesh, urban female domestic workers often lack formal employment contracts, face limited trade union representation, and have limited financial bargaining power within their households. Nevertheless, the majority of these women have access to a mobile phone, providing them with potential access to digital financial services (DFS). This pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) investigates the impact of DFS training and digital wage payments on the labour force participation and financial autonomy of low-income urban women in Bangladesh.

The findings of this study will contribute to the growing body of knowledge on the causal mechanisms between DFS and women’s economic empowerment (WEE).

Key findings from baseline

y Women in the sample demonstrate high awareness of basic digital financial services, but low usage.

y Women infrequently use mobile money to receive funds.

y While the women save, they rarely use mobile money accounts to do so.

y The women in the sample demonstrate low awareness regarding the link between economic independence and account ownership.

Session 6 | Women’s Effective Ownership and Usage of Mobile Phones

An Experimental Analysis of the Impact of Smartphones and Household Property Rights on the Uptake of Digital Financial Services

Associated investigators: Philip Roessler, William & Mary; Tanu Kumar, Claremont Graduate University; Peter Carroll, University of Michigan; Boniface Dulani, Institute of Public Opinion and Research (IPOR); and

Daniel Nielson, University of Texas at Austin Country: Malawi

Implementation partners: Institute of Public Opinion and Research (IPOR) and Girls Empowerment Network WEE-DiFine thematic areas: Behavioural influence; household bargaining power

Abstract

In Malawi, women’s limited asset ownership and control over family finances hinder their household bargaining power and economic empowerment. This study examines how women’s smartphone ownership and training programs impact their economic empowerment, use of digital financial services (DFS), and their household’s economic well-being. The study is also designed to benchmark the impact of smartphone distribution and training against the impact of unconditional cash transfers. Outcome measures of interest include women’s phone ownership, shifts in husbands’ beliefs, and couples’ trust and cooperation. The findings will contribute to the literature on differential access to credit based on gender and the impact of financial autonomy on women’s bargaining power and decision-making within households. Additionally, this research has the potential to illuminate how the role of shifting husbands’ beliefs could lead to stronger property rights for women, thus increasing phone uptake and DFS use.

Key findings from midline

y Both mobile technology and appropriate training are critical for the individual uptake and use of DFS vis-à- vis lump-sum transfers.

y Although women in the sample have made advances in mobile money technical efficacy and realized financial inclusion, smartphone recipients are yet to robustly apply these new capabilities.

y Smartphone ownership has increased women’s mobile money use and their financial inclusion, while cash transfers have failed to achieve the same results.

y Cooperative use of smartphones by spouses may be key to unlocking benefits.

Pathways to Women Empowerment Through Smartphone-Enabled Digital Finance

Associated investigators: Giorgia Barboni, Warwick University; Erica Field, Duke University; Rohini Pande, Yale University; Natalia Rigol, Harvard University; Charity Troyer Moore, Yale University; and Simone G Schaner, University of Southern California

Country: India

Implementation partner: Sanchar Kranti Yojana (SKY), State Government of Chhattisgarh WEE-DiFine thematic areas: Access to finance; systematic discrimination; behavioural influence

Abstract

Digital financial platforms are predominantly accessed through mobile phones. In rural India, however, both mobile phone ownership and awareness of mobile-based financial services are significantly lower among women compared to men. This study aims to assess the economic impact of Sanchar Kranti Yojana (SKY), a project launched in Chhattisgarh, India, by its state government. SKY distributed smartphones to rural women and established LTE data networks in previously unconnected rural areas. By utilizing both primary and

administrative data from local government units, household-level surveys, and interviews with local leaders and shopkeepers, the study will evaluate whether SKY increased women’s access to phones, the internet, and digital financial services (DFS). Additionally, it will assess the program’s impact on women’s economic lives and the prevailing social norms governing their phone usage. This research will provide novel insights into the potential of gender-targeted smartphone distribution and improved network infrastructure to increase women’s engagement with DFS and the broader economy.

Photo: BOMA Project

Keynote 3 | Risk Mitigation for Women in the Digital Age: A New Ending to the Same Old Story?

Presented by Michael Carter

Michael R Carter is a distinguished professor of agricultural and resource economics at the University of California, Davis, and an honorary professor of economics at the University of Cape Town. Carter directs the BASIS MRR Innovation Lab and the Index Insurance Innovation Initiative (I4). His research examines poverty dynamics and productive social safety nets, the impact of violence on aspirations and hope, small farm uptake of improved technologies, and features a suite of projects that design, pilot, and evaluate index insurance contracts as mechanisms to alleviate chronic poverty. Carter is a fellow of NBER, BREAD, and the American Agricultural Economics Association, and has served on advisory boards for numerous academic journals and international development non-governmental organizations (NGOs). He is co-editor of The Economics of Poverty Traps.

DAY TWO

Session 2 | Moving From Analog to Digital: Addressing Barriers for Women - Session A

Reaching Financial Equality

Building Blocks for Prioritizing Women

Principal investigator: Nabila Khurshed, Better Than Cash Alliance, United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF)

Partners: World Bank, Women’s World Banking, and UNCDF Country: Global

Abstract

Drawing on decades of experience, research, and fieldwork, the Better Than Cash Alliance presents a comprehensive 10-point action plan to eradicate financial inequality for women. The plan aims to end the persistent economic exclusion faced by half of the global population and to foster the development of more robust and resilient economies. By implementing the prescribed 10 actions, governments and companies can effectively contribute to economic recovery while harnessing the inherent capabilities and contributions of women and girls.

Abstract

In East Africa, the utilization of mobile money services for saving or business transactions remains limited. This pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) tests whether leveraging mobile money for microfinance loan repayment can reshape women’s usage patterns of these services and ultimately impact their economic empowerment.

Data will be collected through surveys and incentivized games to measure the impact that mobile money services and cohort meetings have on women’s agency and empowerment. Ultimately, the study seeks to contribute to the knowledge base on the dynamics of microfinance groups and assess the impact of meeting frequency on social cohesion. Additionally, findings from the pilot will inform the expansion of mobile money microfinancing offered by BRAC Tanzania Finance Limited.

Digital Finance and Economic Empowerment

Experimental Evidence on the Role of Transaction Costs

Associated investigators: Khandker Wahedur Rahman, BIGD; and Jeffrey R. Bloem Country: Bangladesh

Implementation partners: Shakti Foundation for Disadvantaged Women

WEE-DiFine thematic areas: Transaction costs; velocity of transfers; opportunity cost of time; mobility; access to financial services

Abstract

Limited evidence exists on the role of transaction costs in the relationship between digital financial services (DFS) and women’s economic empowerment (WEE). This randomized controlled trial (RCT) aims to investigate this relationship in the context of Bangladesh. Specifically, the study explores the role of both direct and indirect transaction costs. Further, it examines whether women perceive the benefits of reduced direct versus indirect transaction costs differently by designing an experiment that separates the two. The study will also attempt to quantify the extent to which these estimates differ between men and women to assess whether reduced transaction costs can facilitate WEE. The study aims to inform stakeholders, including DFS providers and

development partners, in designing future solutions that optimize transaction costs for greater financial inclusion and WEE.

Key findings from baseline

y Mobile banking has yet to reach unbanked women.

y The framing of survey questions regarding women’s attitudes towards the use of mobile banking led to an 18-percentage-point difference in responses.

y Despite recognizing existing constraints, women hold positive perceptions regarding mobile banking.

Repaying Loans With Mobile Money

Impacts on Female Microfinance Clients in Tanzania

Principal investigators: Rachel Heath, University of Washington; and Emma Riley, University of Washington Implementation partner: BRAC Tanzania Finance Limited

Country: Tanzania

WEE-DiFine thematic areas: Velocity of transfers and breadth of support network; opportunity cost of time

Session 3 | Moving From Analog to Digital: Addressing Barriers for Women - Session B

Measuring the Trust Costs of Conducting Mobile Money Transactions

Principal investigators: Xavier Gine, World Bank; and Francis Annan, University of California, Berkeley Implementation partner: Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA)

Countries: Bangladesh, Tanzania, and Uganda

Abstract

Mobile money and other digital financial services (DFS) help consumers access formal financial products and have proven poverty-alleviating benefits. However, achieving widespread adoption and usage of mobile money remains an ongoing challenge. One prominent barrier is the high and unpredictable costs incurred by consumers during mobile money transactions, including formal fees, unofficial charges by agents, and non- monetary expenses like the opportunity cost of failed transactions. This study seeks to develop a methodology for measuring these costs systematically. Researchers extracted official pricing information from mobile money providers’ websites in 16 countries and conducted consumer intercept surveys and mystery shopping visits in Bangladesh, Tanzania, and Uganda. Analysis unveiled notable findings across contexts.

Key findings

y Pricing varies significantly across countries, with overcharging reported in 15% of agent interactions.

y Reliability is a substantial concern, with 29% of attempted transactions failing.

y The study results vary significantly by method, suggesting that these outcomes are difficult to measure and are sensitive to the data collection method used.

(Digital) Cash Transfers, Privacy, and Women’s Economic Empowerment Experimental Evidence From Uganda

Principal investigators: Selim Gulesci, Trinity College Dublin; Munshi Sulaiman, BIGD, Brac University; Giulia Greco, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine; and Pallavi Prabhakar, Norwegian School of Economics Implementation partner: BRAC Uganda

Country: Bangladesh

WEE-DiFine thematic areas: Access to financial services; the privacy of information; mobility

Abstract

Existing literature on the nexus of digital financial services (DFS), financial privacy, and women’s economic empowerment (WEE) is limited. This study seeks to address this gap through a cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT) in Uganda. The study will assess the differential impacts of cash versus mobile money transfer programs on WEE and intimate partner violence (IPV). The research team will also examine how privacy may advance WEE and how WEE outcomes differ based on the type of transfer used. Evidence from this study may be used by the Ugandan government to improve the efficiency of social protection initiatives.

Key findings from the baseline

y Women value privacy of information about money transfers, whether they store their savings in cash or in mobile money accounts.

y Women tend to hide their money; specifically, 55% of women have reported privately storing a portion of their money.

y Half of the women surveyed opt to store money in their mobile money accounts.

Digitally-Enabled Asset Insurance to Secure the Graduation and Empowerment of Women in Pastoralist Communities

Principal investigators: Michael Carter, University of California, Davis; Nathaniel Jensen, International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI); and Sam Owilly, The BOMA Project

Implementation partners: Takaful Insurance of Africa Ltd and The BOMA Project Country: Kenya

WEE-DiFine thematic areas: Behavioural influence; bargaining power

Abstract

Graduation programs effectively address chronic poverty. However, it is unclear whether the positive impacts on women’s lives generated by these programs can withstand persistent droughts. Access to insurance designed to protect women’s assets may address this issue. This five-year randomized controlled trial (RCT) assesses the integration of index-based livestock insurance (IBLI), a digitally-enabled insurance mechanism, into The BOMA Project’s Rural Entrepreneur Access Project (REAP) in Samburu County, Kenya. The study also tests an innovative insurance contract focused on women’s responsibilities and concerns. The study identifies solutions for consideration by actors such as BRAC and BOMA interested in designing more durable programs for women.

Key findings

y In a hypothetical context, family-centred framing has almost doubled women’s demand for digital asset insurance, relative to conventional framing.

y For novel risk-management products like digital asset insurance, some level of subsidy appears necessary to allow women to learn about the product. Additionally, learning is complemented by efforts that render insurance relevant to rural women, such as framing the product as pertinent to a family’s needs.

y Family framing combined with subsidies has increased the probability of a family buying digital asset insurance by 10 percentage points.

Photo: CIRDAP InfoRD

Incentives and Endorsement for Technology Adoption for Females Evidence From Mobile Banking in Ghana

Principal investigators: Emma Riley, University of Washington; Abu Shonchoy, Florida International University;

and Robert Darko Osei, Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER), University of Ghana Implementation partner: Opportunity International Savings and Loans (OISL)

Country: Ghana

Abstract

The adoption of new technology can be hampered by a lack of knowledge regarding the benefits, particularly among women. Moreover, individual encouragement may fail to increase uptake if individuals rely on referrals from peers or local influencers when considering the adoption of new technology. This study employs a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to understand the respective roles of individual incentives and peer endorsement in the adoption of a new technology. The research focuses on mobile banking services, a technology which enables transfers between mobile money and bank accounts.

Key findings

y While individual incentives increase the adoption of new technology, peer endorsement doubles the impact of the individual subsidy.

y Peer endorsement is particularly effective in enhancing knowledge and confidence in using mobile banking.

y These results demonstrate the importance of peers in encouraging greater individual technology adoption.

Photo: DS Panwar, India

Implementation Institutions

Conference Partners Uganda

Partners of the WEE-DiFine Initiative

Subawardee Institutions

Independent valuation and Research Cell

State Government of Chhattisgarh

Tanzania Finance Ltd.

Sanchar Kranti Yojana

Institute of Public

Opinion and Research

BIGD is a social science research and post-graduate teaching institute of Brac University.

bigd.bracu.ac.bd