19. Mobile Money Transactions for Financial Inclusion in Socioeconomic Development: An Interpretative Account of Two Ghanaian Rural Communities

Mobile money (MoMo) transactions have become increasingly popular in much of the developing world as means of innovative financial electronic transactions. Thus, the increasing popularity of the mobile phone has found itself extraordinarily significant in conducting financial transactions, of which mobile money transfer is crucial. Part of this phenomenon could be attributable to the growing information communication technology (ICT) use that manifests in the application of portable mobile devices. Drawing on the underlying concepts of interpretive research philosophy undergirded by qualitative orientation to data collection and analysis, this academic effort studies two rural communities in Ghana’s second most populated region, Ashanti, to understand how MoMo transactions encourage financial inclusion for socioeconomic development in rural communities. The development literature was a lens to yield the findings suggesting financial inclusion’s instrumentality in enhancing socioeconomic development in rural communities. This revelation significantly contributes to knowledge and practice as the development literature has underemphasized this technologically inspired component in the qualitative research community. The study, therefore, contributes to the growing body of literature and theory surrounding the issues driving the increasing popularity of mobile money transactions and its associated contributions to the socioeconomic development of the life of rural communities. Future studies should examine how much security and privacy issues can hamper this development effort. Again, future policy should look into strengthening the infrastructural capabilities of rural communities to ensure sustained development through financial inclusion in reinforcing socioeconomic development in disadvantaged communities.