Dr. John A. Kumah
DEPUTY MINISTER of Finance, Dr. John A. Kumah, has hinted that a survey conducted in 2021 revealed that about 96 per cent of Ghana’s adult population have access to financial services.
According to him, “As a result, Ghana has lowest financial exclusion at 4 percent down from 44 percent in 2010 as compared to some selected African countries including South Africa, Nigeria, Cameroon, Togo, Tanzania, and Namibia.
Dr. Kumah said the survey, which covered both national and regional representative samples of 5,156 from all 16 regions across the country, targeted respondents 15 years of age and above, in line with the United Nation’s definition of adults.
Speaking at the launch of the 2021 Financial Services Demand-Side Survey forum organised by the Ghana Statistical Service in Accra, he said, 95 percent of adults used a combination of formal and informal mechanisms to manage their financial needs.
Dr. Kumah explained that only 0.6 percent of adults rely exclusively on banking services from 15.2 percent in 2010, and 1 percent of the adult population only rely on informal mechanisms up from 15.3 percent in 2010, this is due to the mobile money impact.
The MP for Ejisu, speaking further, said “Elderly persons (60 years +) with lower levels of education and seniors (36 – 60 years) are more likely to be excluded but still utilize other formal (non-bank) solutions”.
He added that overall credit consumption remained constant since 2010, also formal other (non-bank) financial services/products mostly Mobile Money game changers in deepening inclusion and reducing financial exclusion and 58 percent of Ghanaians have only mobile money accounts.
“The adoption of savings through mobile money in Ghana accounts for 60% of all savings, rural residents are heavily reliant on the usage of Mobile Money; and
The overall use of insurance products increased to 68% in 2021 from 46 percent in 2010. The most used product is health/medical insurance,” Dr. Kumah said.
He added that clearly, the credit market in Ghana needs a lot more attention for it to play a significant role in our financial inclusion drive, adding that “With just about 21 percent of the adult population accessing the credit, drastic policy measures must be put in place to make the credit market more conducive to support small and medium businesses for economic growth and prosperity for all Ghanaians.”
BY Daniel Bampoe