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Open Access Publications from the University of California

Scholarly Works (4 results)

  • Article
  • Peer Reviewed
Final Reports (2011)
Previous studies about financial services for the poor are narrowly defined, mainly depends on secondary data, and focused on the design issues. They did not explore what the need of the poor. Thus in order to fill the current knowledge gap and inform mobile money design this study investigates the types of social relationships and social payment practices thereof. Accordingly, the study investigate that there are three types of relationships: (1) among people with similar economic (life style) status, (2) among individuals and higher class people, and (3) among individuals and religious objects of worship. On these relationships there are different money exchange practice (transactions) of which some are executed secretly (undocumented) and some others are disclosed (documented). This study adopts qualitative Study approach in which focus group discussion with key informants is the primary means of information gathering.
    Cover page: Social Relationships and Social Payments in Ethiopia (Synopsis of Research Results)Creative Commons 'BY-NC' version 4.0 license
    • Article
    • Peer Reviewed
    Working Papers (2012)
    Most studies of mobile money for the poor focus narrowly on questions of technical design and  pay little attention to the various needs of the poor and their complex relationships with money and financial services.  In order to fill the current knowledge gap and to better inform the design of new mobile money systems for the purpose of financial inclusion, this study investigates social relationships and payment practices among the poor in rural Ethiopia. A study of existing payment practices in Ethiopia is pertinent especially given the recent proliferation of various mobile money initiatives. Two key questions face mobile money professionals and scholars of financial inclusion alike: How will these mobile money initiatives reach out to the local population? How will they incorporate existing (albeit unbanked) financial practices? This paper aims to lay the ground for designing mobile money products and services that cater to local institutions and practices. The paper, therefore, explores the social dynamics of various local financial practices—informal savings and loans institutions, monetary and non-monetary gifts, and payments to people with power and to deities.
      Cover page: Understanding Social Relations and Payments Among the Poor in EthiopiaCreative Commons 'BY-NC' version 4.0 license
      • Article
      • Peer Reviewed
      Executive Summaries (2012)

      This is the 2-page executive summary for the IMTFI Working Paper: Understanding Social Relations and Payments Among the Poor in Ethiopia.

      Most studies of mobile money for the poor pay little attention to the complex relationships of people on the ground with money and financial services. In order to better inform the design of new mobile money systems for the purpose of financial inclusion, this research project by Woldmariam F. Mesfin investigates social relationships and payment practices among the poor in rural Ethiopia. A study of existing payment practices in Ethiopia is pertinent especially given the recent proliferation of various mobile money initiatives. Two key questions face mobile money professionals and scholars of financial inclusion alike: How will these mobile money initiatives reach out to the local population? How will they incorporate existing (albeit unbanked) financial practices?

      In order to inform new designs for mobile money products and services about local financial institutions and practices, this study explores the ecology of social payments—informal savings and loans institutions, monetary and non-monetary gifts, payments to people with power and to deities—while identifying some key challenges to fulfilling these payments.

        Cover page: Understanding Social Relations and Payments Among the Poor in Ethiopia (Executive Summary)Creative Commons 'BY-NC' version 4.0 license
        • Peer Reviewed
        Papers (2014)
        Current mobile money systems provide users with hierarchical user interface and represent money as a positive rational numbers of the form 1, 3, 4.87...N. However, research indicates that rural communities that cannot read and write have a challenge entering such numbers in to mobile money system. Navigating through hierarchical text menu is also difficult to illiterate individuals. The present study uses concepts like memory placeholders, dragging & dropping; swiping, temporary holding space, and frequency counter and proposed a system that consists of three layers. The first layer denotes user interface and uses photos of currency notes, second layer is a placeholder memory that keep record of the frequency of currency bill, and the last layer keeps record of the total digital money in the system. We believe that the proposed system enables illiterate to identify currency notes while making payments and receiving payments, count digital money while making payments and or receiving payments during transaction.
          Cover page: Mobile Money System Design for Illiterate Users in Rural Ethiopia - Conference paperCreative Commons 'BY-NC' version 4.0 license
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