| dc.description |
This study has attempted to explore the economic impact of m-banking on business
development in Tanzania, a case study of Kariakoo market Foodstuff Vendors. The
author was interested to find out the extent to which the vendors who bought
foodstuffs from farmers in the upcountry regions used m-banking services to make
payments. The study also investigated how the Tanzania Regulatory Authority was
working with the Network Operators to ensure a good platform for m-banking
services. The study further inquired the knowledge of the vendors on the potential of
benefits from m-banking and the actual benefits they were getting. The study used a
sample size of 89 respondents, 88 collected from Kariakoo Market Foodstuff
Vendors and One from TCRA.
Using a Chi-Square statistical Model and analysis of data using STATA, it was
found that use of m-banking for economic activities was still very low. The vendors
were found to understand the benefits of m-banking and mentioned things like easy
access to withdrawals, easy service payments, low cost account servicing and low
risk of funds. But even with this knowledge, few were already using m-banking for
economic activities. .
Challenges faced m-banking were inadequate network availability to some areas,
inadequate recovery of money. The Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority
(TCRA) had no specific law to govern financial Transactions. While use of mobile
phones during the past ten years (2004 – 2014) was found to increase from 3 million
to 29 million (country wide), however, as far as Foodstuff vendors of Kariakoo were
concerned, usage of mobile phones on economic activities was not found to go in
line with the increase of mobile phone lines. It was thus recommended that the
government enacts laws to protect users of MFS for the potential of money lose
through thefts and manipulations from the intended receivers. Further, more
education should be provided to highlight the essence of MFS uses for economic
activities. Lastly it is recommended that a study be carried out to establish, the extent
to which product time is spend on surfing on unnecessary materials on phones in
Tanzania. |
|