Savings Groups and Banks: Complements or Substitutes? Financial Inclusion in Rural Tanzania

<p>Abstract: The substantial increase in the number savings and credit groups as well as microfinance institutions over the past years suggests that individuals in the developing world have progressively become aware of the importance of access to financial services. This study adds to the existing literature on the function of savings and credit groups in places with lower use of formal financial services and inform us whether these groups are a possible substitute or complement for formal financial services (banks) within low-income communities. Based on household data collected in Tanzania in 2013, this paper attempts, using two different estimations, a Probit and then a 2SLS model, to evaluate the impact of participation in Savings and Credit Cooperatives (SACCO) on the probability of members joining formal financial institutions. Although results show no statistical significance in terms of a causal relationship, there remains a positively strong correlation between savings group participation and the probability of opening a formal savings account at a Bank.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science in International and Development Economics (MSIDEC)

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Economics

Year dc:date.available

2016

Author dc:creator

• Rubangura Teta, Shirleen

Contributors dc:contributor

• Alessandra Cassar

• savings credit groups microfinance developing world financial services low-income 2SLS Savings and Credit Cooperatives
• Behavioral Economics
• Econometrics
• International Economics

Repository record dc:identifier

https://repository.usfca.edu/thes/192

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.usfca.edu:thes-1238