Global Assets Project, New America Foundation

In her post, Monique Cohen points out some of the most common assumptions about how youth in developing countries use mobile banking and mobile phones.  These assertions, some tantalizing and many requiring further substantiation, suggest that more research needs to be done in order to effectively market mobile banking and other mobile-enabled services to youth.  New America Foundation has developed a survey as a means to investigate some of these assumptions.  We invite you to share your thoughts on youth financial services and mobile technology in our survey here. 

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Originally posted at Child & Youth Finance International Blog

By Corrinne Ngurukie, Save the Children

Measure twice, cut once

YouthSave’s bank partners began creating their youth savings accounts in 2010, with extensive market research that obtained firsthand information about the savings habits, needs, and preferences of young people. But using these data to design the savings accounts was not enough; the resulting product prototypes still had to be “road-tested” in order to confirm that we had correctly a) interpreted the market research, b) translated it into product designs that met youths’ needs, and c) put in place the right marketing, back-office and sales systems, policies, and delivery channels. In three countries – Ghana, Kenya and Nepal – YouthSave’s bank partners did this through time-bound pilots in a limited number of branches. These pilots yielded valuable lessons that ensured the products’ success when they finally rolled out network-wide in 2012. 

A youth account holder in coastal Kenya discusses what she likes and dislikes about SMATA with a pilot evaluation team member.

By Corrinne Ngurukie and Rani Deshpande, Save the Children

Measure twice, cut once

YouthSave’s bank partners began creating their youth savings accounts in 2010, with extensive market research that obtained firsthand information about the savings habits, needs, and preferences of young people.  But using these data to design the savings accounts was not enough.  The resulting product prototypes still had to be “road-tested” in order to confirm that we had correctly a) interpreted the market research, b) translated it into product designs that met youths’ needs, and c) put in place the right marketing, back-office and sales systems, policies, and delivery channels.  In three countries – Ghana, Kenya and Nepal – YouthSave’s bank partners did this through time-bound pilots in a limited number of branches.

Responses provided by David Ansong & Gina Chowa, The Center for Social Development

Question 1: What are the main objectives of the research in Ghana?

The objective of the Ghana research experiment is to understand how the YouthSave intervention impacts youth development. Specifically, the research aims to measure the uptake, savings outcomes, experiences, and impact of youth-tailored savings accounts at the institutional level. The research also will evaluate the effects of the YouthSave Enidaso account on youth outcomes, including health, educational, psychological, and financial. To this end, together with our partners at the Institute of Statistical, Social, and Economic Research (ISSER) at the University of Ghana, we have planned at least two data collection points: baseline and follow-up. Given the enthusiasm and expertise of our research partners at ISSER, we are confident the successful data collection at the beginning of the project will also be effectively replicated in 2014. This will allow us to continue to obtain quality data that will provide insight into how the YouthSave intervention may or may not have impacted development outcomes.