Mobile money usage in rural areas of Zimbabwe - case of Mudzi District

Abstract

Mobile money is increasingly becoming popular in Zimbabwe. Availability of mobile money agents in rural areas is increasingly improving. This had dramatically simplified banking to the majority of the rural poor unbanked Zimbabweans. Consumers now enjoy much convenience offered by these mobile money services. However mobile money usage is still higher in urban areas than in rural areas although significant penetration levels can be witnessed. Most people in rural areas use mobile money more to receive money than any other service. About 69% of respondents in this survey have used mobile money. This figure shows a significant growth in mobile money usage. Convenience is the major driver to mobile money usage in rural areas. This survey was done in Mudzi and used face to face interviews as well as questionnaires. Financial services providers need to open more outlets in rural areas if they wish to reduce the unbanked population