Centre of Excellence for Development Impact and Learning, March 2023
Robust markets for digital financial services are emerging, but the lowest enrollment rates have been among women and refugees. A randomized trial of the Strengthening Host and Refugee Populations program in Ethiopia encouraged high-volume customers to refer other customers and receive a small bonus for doing so, leading to increased enrollment generally but not among women and refugees. A second trial provided inactive customers with small incentives to start using the system, leading to increased use among women but not among refugees.