When Equal Use Is Not What It Seems

Ghana has one of the most mature mobile money markets in Africa, and one of the smallest mobile ownership gender gaps. According to the 2021 Gallup World Poll, mobile ownership in Ghana (the pre-requisite for a mobile money account) is one of the most equal on the continent, with 85% of women saying they own a phone compared to 87% of men. The GSMA’s recent research in Ghana with mobile owners found that 88% of men and 87% of women surveyed have a mobile money account; most of whom have made at least one transaction in the last three months, with little difference by gender (Figure 1).  

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​This research – carried out in both urban and rural parts of the country - explored how usage of mobile money changed during the lockdowns and associated pandemic measures in 2021, with a special focus on women entrepreneurs. It showed how both men and women who own a mobile started using mobile money more during the pandemic  and that most expect to continue using it at a similar level or even more, again with little difference by gender. In fact, a quarter of the sample interviewed had signed up for mobile money since the pandemic.  

However, what really intrigued us was the data beyond these headline figures – a deeper look at the details of our findings revealed several gender differences not immediately apparent on the surface. We’ve highlighted some of these findings below. They apply to women in general, and to women entrepreneurs specifically.  

A deeper look at the details of our findings revealed several gender differences not immediately apparent on the surface.

Women are using mobile money less frequently than men

Although women with a mobile money account were almost as likely as men to have transacted in the last three months, their usage tends to be limited to cash in/cash out services and person-to-person (P2P) transfers. They are substantially less likely than men to be using mobile money on a daily basis. 

Women find mobile money more convenient

 The vast majority of account owners surveyed reported that mobile money is the most convenient financial tool. But of those reporting that cash was most convenient, a significant proportion were women. Furthermore, the entrepreneurs who found cash more convenient were significantly more likely to be women (Figure 2). 

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Women are less likely than men to be aware of the full range of mobile money services available

Female entrepreneurs were significantly less likely to be aware of value-adding mobile money services (i.e., airtime top-ups, paying for goods in shops, bill payments) than their male counterparts. Further research is needed to understand why this is, although it’s already clear that how women learn about mobile money (see below) may influence their awareness as well.  

Women tend to learn about mobile money from family members

This tendency was even more pronounced for female entrepreneurs, with 26% reporting that they had learned about mobile money services from a family member compared to 15% of their male counterparts (who were more likely to have learned about mobile money from adverts or an agent). This limits women to the awareness, knowledge and skills of their family members, which is likely to be incomplete. Furthermore, it depends on intra-household dynamics and the goodwill of family members to spend time explaining these functions. 

Women are more likely than men to seek help when transacting

Although most account owners handle their own transactions, amongst entrepreneurs, women are significantly more likely than men to ask someone else to transact on their behalf. Some 20% of women entrepreneurs with a mobile money account use a family member to help with transactions compared to only 13% of male entrepreneurs, and transaction help from agents is sought by 16% of women vs. 11% of men.       

These insights are not only interrelated but also reinforce each other. Some women may be using mobile money services less because they need help transacting, which in turn makes the overall experience less convenient. They may be unaware of value-adding services because their main information source is their family, again making mobile money seem less convenient than cash. Yet the value of mobile money in helping women – especially women entrepreneurs – to meet their economic and well-being needs is demonstrated by the high proportion of women who do use it, albeit less frequently than men and mostly for basic services.    

Still, the value of mobile money for women is not being fully realized – and account ownership alone is not enough to achieve it.  Women need to be aware of the full range of services available to them and have the skills to transact independently.  

Suggestions based on these findings

Awareness raising and marketing by mobile money providers in Ghana could focus specifically on the eight value-adding services in Figure 3 that women entrepreneurs are significantly less likely to be aware of than their male counterparts.  

Doing so could increase usage and help women reap the same benefits male entrepreneurs are experiencing – making life more convenient and saving precious time and money.  

Agents can play an active role in raising women’s awareness of other services and, importantly, in coaching them in how to use the services by themselves, on their own phone.  

Increasing the number of female agents is likely to address an additional barrier to greater use of mobile money services. Many women in our survey highlighted that a lack of female agents prevented them from using mobile money services more.  

Has your organization deployed any digital financial inclusion marketing or awareness-raising efforts with women in Ghana? In other geographies?  What was the result and what did you learn from this? Comment below!  

Find out more about the GSMA Mobile Money team and the GSMA Connected Women team.