Datasource:
FinScope Survey
Period:
May, 2013 to June, 2013.
The 2013 FinScope datasource was commissioned by Access to Finance Rwanda (AFR) which was launched in March 2010 at the request of the Government of Rwanda, and with support from the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) and the World Bank. The core objective of AFR is to remove systemic barriers to financial services by putting the poor at the centre of its interventions. In pursuit of this objective, AFR needed information about how the landscape of access to, and usage of, financial services had changed since 2008.
FinScope 2013 findings revealed that:
■ Proximity to financial institutions was not a barrier to formal financial inclusion. More than 90% of adult Rwandans lived within a 5km radius from a formal financial institution.
■ Eligibility was not a barrier to formal financial inclusion. For most financial institutions strict deposit and minimum balance requirements do not apply. The main requirement for opening a basic entry level type of account was proof of identity. Carrying of the national identity card was obligatory to every Rwandan 16 years or older and therefore eliminated eligibility as a barrier to inclusion.
■ Most Rwandan adults who were financially excluded did not regard affordability of products and services as a significant barrier to uptake. Uptake Comparing the FinScope 2012 findings with that of the FinScope Rwanda 2008 survey indicated that there was a significant increase in uptake of financial products and services.
■ Financial exclusion has dropped by 46% since 2008.
■ In 2008 52% of adults (i.e. individuals 18 years or older) were financially excluded; in 2012 28% (1.3 million adults) were excluded and 72% (3.2 million adults) of Rwandan adults had or used financial products or mechanisms.
■ The reduction in exclusion was caused by a significant increase in the proportion of adults who were formally served (i.e. who have or use a product or service from a formal financial institution).
■ The banked population increased from 14% of adults in 2008 to 23% in 2012.
■ The establishment of Umurenge SACCOs has significantly changed the landscape of access to formal financial institutions in Rwanda.
This intervention has been successful in providing formal financial services to Rwandans who would otherwise not have used formal financial services. At least 22% of adults (1 million) were members of an Umurenge SACCO.