The Influence of Mobile Money Operations on Financial Inclusion in Tanzania

Abstract

Tanzania has been at the forefront of mobile money operations in East Africa, benefiting from high mobile penetration rates. With key players like Vodacom, Airtel, Tigo, and Halotel dominating the market, mobile money operation services have revolutionized financial transactions by providing an alternative to traditional banking systems (Makulilo, 2019),this has in return emerged with vast achievements in National financial inclusion target from 86% in 2017 to 89% in 2023 that was mainly attributed by mobile money adoption as per 2023-2028 National Financial Inclusion Framework .This study was conducted in Mbeya region with the aim of assessing the influence of mobile money operations on financial inclusion, specifically by examining how the reliability, accessibility and financial literacy as independent variables influence financial inclusion. This study was guided by one theory which is Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). A quantitative research methodology and cross-sectional design were employed, using random sampling techniques survey data was collected from 217 respondents. The relationship between the dependent variable (Financial inclusion) and the independent variables was established, tested and analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression techniques. The findings reveal that the independent variables (Mobile Money operation accessibility, Mobile money operation reliability and financial literacy) explain financial inclusion growth by 93.7%. Each independent variable was tested separately; results show that, mobile money operation accessibility with (P-value (0.000) < 0.05), mobile money operation reliability with (P-value (0.000) < 0.05) and financial literacy with (P-value (0.002) < 0.05) have significant and positive impact on financial inclusion growth. Based on these findings, the study recommends that government in partnership with mobile money operators should incorporate financial literacy initiatives in their projects so as to foster financial inclusion particularly in rural areas. Further studies can be conducted to comprehensively examine the impact of regulatory frameworks in enhancing financial inclusion.