Mothers face complex financial decisions that are pivotal not only to their own lives but to their children’s and family’s too. Despite the crucial roles that mothers play in households across geographies and income levels, women are often excluded from formal financial systems—in Zambia, for example, only 40% of them have access to any type of formal financial service.

Gender barriers are deeply rooted in social and cultural norms that dictate roles and relationships, power and decision-making dynamics within households, access to resources, inheritance of assets, educational attainment and economic potential. While not a panacea, it is well documented that enhancing access to and development of digital financial services (DFS) plays an increasingly prominent part in smoothening gendered inequities and aiding women to realize their economic potential.

In Zambia, the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) partnered with the research firm Afriqinsights to collect and analyse qualitative and quantitative data, collected through interviews with 750 mothers across the country in January and February 2018, on the financial journeys women take, the challenges they face and the opportunities that exist for digital finance to address some of the identified challenges. ‘Labour Pains: Discovering the Financial Lives of Zambian Mothers’ summarizes the findings and insights from the research.

Based on the hypothesis that Zambian mothers constitute a unique user group (similar to farmers, refugees or small-business owners) and the facts that almost 75% of Zambian women between 15 and 49 years of age are mothers and 33% of Zambian women become mothers by age 18, UNCDF sought to learn more about this segment—across income levels, age groups and geographies—and to deepen its knowledge of and enhance the data on Zambian mothers’ financial behaviours. By better understanding their specific financial and non-financial needs and challenges, providers can develop and refine DFS to better meet their unique requirements.

Event launches the research on Zambian mothers and presents a customer acquisition and retention opportunity.

Speaking at a December event introducing the research results to stakeholders and players in the Zambian DFS ecosystem, UNCDF Regional Technical Specialist Nandini Harihareswara highlighted that, as financial service providers increasingly look to expand their customer base, they may find the keys to unlocking a critical customer segment—women—through this research. She added that financial services might help ease the ‘labour pains’ of being a Zambian mother.

The event, entitled ‘Customer Acquisition and Retention Opportunity: Discover Zambian Mothers,’ was capped by a keynote address by Dr Tukiya Kankasa-Mabula, Deputy Governor of Administration at the Bank of Zambia. She expressed the commitment of the central bank to improve the financial inclusion of all Zambians, with a focus on women who are largely excluded from the country’s formal financial system. Dr Kankasa-Mabula noted, “The UNCDF report clearly highlights what we at the Bank of Zambia have always believed, that women should not be typecast into a singular model but should rather be seen as individuals with independent needs. Not recognizing this individuality leaves an untapped market that could otherwise contribute to the bottom line for financial service providers and increase financial inclusion.”

Research findings help providers understand the needs, wants and aspirations of Zambian mothers.

The research findings revealed that the financial lives of Zambian mothers are dynamic and multifaceted, which means they require diverse types of financial services at various times in their lives. Some of the critical research findings shared at the launch event were the following:

All mothers save but mostly at home.

Of those interviewed, 63% reported saving, 38% said they store money at home and 29% indicated they use mobile-money. Of those that primarily save money at home, 69% were rural inhabitants. Living expenses, emergencies and school fees ranked as the top three savings motivators, indicating that savings products that help mothers reach these goals could serve as an essential pathway for introducing financial services. Zambian mothers’ aspirations to save, even small amounts for various expenses and emergencies, present an opportunity for financial service providers to help formally bank them by offering affordable, accessible and easy-to-use products that help them reach their goals.

Mothers are the original ‘gig economy’/short-term employment workers and rely on multiple income streams to meet the financial needs of the family.

Across all income levels, mothers indicated that they take on various part-time jobs in the formal or informal sector to meet household expenses and support their children. Notably, 65% of interviewees ran their own business, typically in an informal setting, as their primary income, while 27% had an additional side business. Zambian mothers need DFS that address the challenges associated with short-term employment, such as difficulty accessing more-productive markets and dealing with seasonal inconsistencies, and products that allow flexibility in payments and that help them save and reduce risk.

Mothers may be the key to unlocking education payments via DFS.

Across all income levels and geographies, mothers revealed that they valued education—both their own and that of their children—and saw it as a means to improve their family’s welfare. Even when women had to halt their education, 31% of interviewees stated that they aspire either to improve their education or to ensure their children are educated. The desire to learn and be trained could offer another pathway for financial service providers to reach women and to help them become more financially literate and save towards education goals. This motivation, coupled with the time-poverty of mothers, making them potentially perfect champions and providers-of-feedback for education-focused products.

What is next?

Calling on players in the DFS ecosystem to act on the insights gained from the research, UNCDF DFS Expert Zerubabel Kwebiiha Junior noted that the Zambian market does not necessarily require ‘pink products’ that only target women; rather, he said, there is a need to examine existing digital finance products that meet the needs of mothers, as outlined in the study, and to develop marketing strategies that effectively target mothers.

Leveraging the findings of the research, UNCDF will organize a design sprint in Q2 2019 and invite interested financial service providers and fintechs to participate in and work towards the design and implementation of digital finance products and marketing strategies, tailored to the characteristics and needs of women, thereby contributing to the advancement of financial inclusion in Zambia.

Check out the full report or executive summary.