The Role of Mobile Money Adoption in Financial Inclusion Among Adults in Uganda, Evidence From Finscope Survey 2023
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Date
2026-04-16
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Uganda Christian University
Abstract
This work looks at how mobile money adoption has contributed to financial inclusion amongst adults in Uganda based on the results of the FinScope Uganda Survey 2023. Although mobile money has now broadened access to financial services, there are concerns on whether the access has been translated to meaningful and sustained financial participation. The gap that the study addresses is that mobile money adoption is conceptualized as a multidimensional construct, covering ownership, frequency of use and service diversity. It is a quantitative cross-sectional research design that uses secondary national representative data. Financial inclusion is measured
as a binary variable of financial inclusion and an index measuring the level of use of financial services. Descriptive statistics, bivariate and logistic regression analyses will be used to establish the association between mobile money usage and financial inclusion while controlling for socio demographic characteristics such as age, gender, education, income, and location. According to the findings, there is very widespread use of mobile money, with 64 percent of the population having mobile money accounts. Financial inclusion access is very widespread, with 87.3 percent of the entire population being financially included. Nevertheless, the findings indicate that the level of
financial inclusion is not uniform, and people, on average, use two to three financial services. The empirical results show that adoption of mobile money has a high and statistically significant impact on financial inclusion. It is important to note that frequency of use and service diversity prove to
be vital drivers, meaning that active and diversified use of the mobile money services is more critical than ownership. Moreover, socio-economic variables (education and income) have a positive impact on financial inclusion, whereas age and rural location are limiting. The paper finds that despite the transformative role of mobile money in increasing access to financial services in Uganda, access is not sufficient to lead to meaning financial inclusion. The
successful nature of inclusion is dependent on its persistent use and the scope of financial services availed. This paper thus suggests a change in policy emphasis to adopt an access-based approach and encourage active utilization, increase services, and overcome structural obstacles that restrict more intensive financial engagement.
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Undergraduate