scholarly journals The effects of financial inclusion on agricultural productivity in Nigeria

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Babajide Fowowe

PurposeFarmers are the largest group of financially excluded persons in Nigeria, thereby highlighting the supply shortfall in finance to agriculture in Nigeria. Availability of finance would go a long way in improving output and productivity in agriculture, and consequently help in reducing poverty. This study conducts an empirical investigation of the effects of financial inclusion on agricultural productivity in Nigeria.Design/methodology/approachThis study makes use of the Living Standards Measurement Study–Integrated Surveys on Agriculture (LSMS-ISA). This is a new data set on agricultural households which contains information on agricultural activities and various household activities, including banking, savings and insurance behaviour. Considering the data are such that there are observations for households over three time periods, the study exploits the time series and cross-section dimension of the data by using panel data estimation.FindingsThe empirical results of the study show that financial inclusion, irrespective of how it is measured, has exerted positive and statistically significant effects on agricultural productivity in Nigeria.Originality/valueWhile considerable research has been conducted to examine how finance affects broad macroeconomic aggregates, little is known about the effects of finance at the household and individual level. It is important to explicitly account for financial inclusion when examining the effects of finance on individuals and households. This study improves on existing research and offers new insights into the effects of financial inclusion on the economic activities of agricultural households in Nigeria.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Folorunsho M. Ajide

Purpose This study aims to investigate the possible relationship between financial inclusion and shadow economy in selected African countries. Design/methodology/approach The study uses panel data estimation technique and Toda and Yamamoto causality approach. The data of selected African counties over a period of 2005–2015 are sourced from World Bank Development Indicators, International Monetary Fund International Financial statistics database and International Country Risk Guide. Findings The results show that financial inclusion reduces the size of shadow economy. The causality results show that there is a unidirectional causality moving from financial inclusion to shadow economy. The results demonstrate that a country with lower level of corruption and higher level of growth can benefit more in reducing the size of shadow economy through financial inclusion. Originality/value This study provides the first evidence of the link between financial inclusion and shadow economy from the Sub-Saharan Africa perspective. The study suggests that financial inclusion may be useful in affecting the size of shadow economy in Africa.


2016 ◽  
Vol 36 (11/12) ◽  
pp. 774-791
Author(s):  
Pavol Frič ◽  
Martin Vávra

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to answer following question: what is the relationship between member activism performed through civil society organizations (CSOs) and individualized freelance activism (in form of online activism, everyday making, political consumerism or checkbook activism) independent of organizational framework? Is it a relationship of mutual competition or support? Design/methodology/approach Analysis is carried out on data from 2009 questionnaire-based survey on volunteering, representative for adult Czech population. The data set allowed the authors to relate member activism with freelance activism and in case of member activism distinguish the type of organization and the level of its professionalization. Findings Dominant pattern the authors identified in data is mutual support of both types of volunteering documented by significant overlap of these forms of public engagement. The most striking is the overlap for active members of new advocacy NGOs and the weakest for traditional clubs. Regression analysis shows that on an individual level “mixed activism” (compared with “pure freelance activism”) is linked with higher education and higher confidence in civic organizations. Originality/value The civil practice of individualized freelance activism was described and analysed by various authors as an activity of specific types of activist, but there has not yet been any research giving reflection on such a large scale of freelance activism types as in the analysis. The authors set them together in contrast to the member (collective, organized) form of civic activism and also took into account the influence of professionalization and type of CSOs.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohsin Ali ◽  
Mudeer Ahmed Khattak ◽  
Nafis Alam

PurposeThe study of credit risk has been of the utmost importance when it comes to measuring the soundness and stability of the banking system. Due to the growing importance of Islamic banking system, a fierce competition between Islamic and conventional banks have started to emerge which in turn is impacting credit riskiness of both banking system.Design/methodology/approachUsing the system GMM technique on 283 conventional banks and 60 Islamic banks for the period of 2006–2017, this paper explores the important impact of size and competition on the credit risk in 15 dual banking economies.FindingsThe authors found that as bank competition increases credit risk seems to be reduced. On the size effect, the authors found that big Islamic banks are less risky than big conventional banks whereas small Islamic banks are riskier than small conventional banks. The results are robust for different panel data estimation models and sub-samples of different size groups. The findings of this paper provide important insights into the competition-credit risk nexus in the dual banking system.Originality/valueThe paper is specifically focused on credit risk in dual banking environment and tries to fill the gap in the literature by studying (1) do the Islamic and conventional banks exhibit a different level of credit risk; (2) does competition in the banking system impact the credit risk of Islamic and conventional banks and finally (3) do the big and small banks exhibit similar levels of credit risk.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yogesh Chauhan ◽  
Rajesh Pathak

PurposeThe paper examines how earnings transparency affects dividend payouts for Indian firms. The authors also explore the channels through which earnings transparency affects dividend payouts.Design/methodology/approachThe authors employ panel data estimation with fixed effects to examine the role of earnings transparency on dividend payouts. The authors also use path analysis to explore causation. The paper uses a sample of more than 2000 Indian listed firms, over the period 2001–2016.FindingsThe authors report that firms showing grater earning transparency pay more cash dividend. Their results do not support the signaling hypothesis about the dividend. However, these results provide explicit support to the theory that corporate dividend policy is an outcome of information asymmetry. Moreover, the path analysis reveals the effect of earnings transparency on corporate payout through the financial constraint channel. The results are robust to idiosyncratic controls; alternate measures of payout; alternate models; endogeneity concerns; and the alternate channel of returning money to stockholders.Practical implicationsManagers should also examine earnings transparency while formulating an adequate dividend policy for their firms. This study also helps investors to identify dividend-paying stocks.Originality/valueThis study particularly contributes to the literature examining the effect of earnings quality on dividend payouts through its effect on financial constraints. We, therefore, connect two streams of research that contemplate the relation between accounting-based information variables and dividend payouts and the relationship between financial constraints and dividend payouts. Moreover, using path analysis uniquely, the authors provide evidence on the relative importance of both the direct and the indirect link.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuang Ren ◽  
Guiyao Tang ◽  
Andrea Kim

PurposeDrawing on a motivational model of proactive behavior, this study theorizes that employment status, reflective moral attentiveness (RMA), and organization-based self-esteem (OBSE) constitute the can-do, reason-to, and energized-to motivational states, which interact to induce organizational citizenship behavior toward the environment (OCB-E).Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted random coefficient modeling (RCM) analysis with a multisource, time-lagged data set collected from 235 employees in Chinese firms.FindingsThis RCM analysis found that more OCB-E resulted from standard employees with higher levels of RMA and OBSE.Originality/valueThe value of this research lies in understanding of the antecedents of green behavior at the individual level by identifying specific motivational states and highlighting the coexistence of motivational states in predicting OCB-E. These findings provide new insight into the theory of developing and managing green OCB performers in today's workplace characterized by workforce mixing.


2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sydney Chikalipah

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the determinants of financial inclusion (FI) in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Design/methodology/approach The paper uses the World Bank country-level data from 20 SSA countries for the year 2014. Findings The empirical findings in this study indicate that illiteracy is the major hindrance to FI in SSA. The findings provide useful information to government agencies and international development organisations. Also, the findings can help accelerate and strengthen FI strategies among SSA countries. Research limitations/implications Some countries were excluded from the final analysis due to lack of data. Practical implications In the last two decades, there has been renewed interest in fighting financial exclusion in Africa. Therefore, this study provide evidence which clearly shows that enhancing literacy levels in a country can immensely contribute towards building the financially inclusive societies in the SSA region. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to empirically test the determinants of FI in SSA using the World Bank FI data set. Furthermore, this is the first attempt to estimate the determinants of FI with a combined data of SSA countries.


2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 344-371 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirella Damiani ◽  
Fabrizio Pompei ◽  
Andrea Ricci

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the role of performance-related pay (PRP) on productivity and wages of Italian firms. Design/methodology/approach – A unique data set for the Italian economy, obtained from the ISFOL Employer and Employee Surveys (2005, 2007, 2010), is used to estimate the relationship between PRP, labour productivity and wages, also controlling for an ample set of covariates. The authors performed standard quantile regressions (QRs) to investigate heterogeneity in associations of PRP with labour productivity and wages. In a second stage, the endogeneity of PRP was taken into account by using instrumental variable QR techniques. Findings – The econometric estimates suggests that PRP are incentive schemes that substantially lead to efficiency enhancements and wage gains. These findings are confirmed for firms under union governance and suggest that well-designed policies, that circumvent the limited implementation of PRP practices, would guarantee productivity improvement and wage premiums for employees. Research limitations/implications – The main limitation of the findings concerns PRP data, that do not offer statistical information on different types of schemes, at group or individual level. Originality/value – This paper is the first to investigate, on a national scale for the Italian economy, the role of PRP on both productivity and wages, in order to shed light on the efficiency and distributive implications, whereas most of the studies of related literature are restricted to one of those aspects.


2014 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 437-452 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chung-wen Chen

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between gender and ethics, the interaction of job position and gender on ethics, and the three-way interacting effects of cultural values, job position, and gender on ethics. Design/methodology/approach – The individual-level data were from the 2005-2008 wave of World Values Survey data set and the cultural values were from the GLOBE study. The research contained 26,639 subjects from 30 nations and used HLM to conduct data analysis. Findings – Results showed that men are more likely than women to justify ethically suspect behaviors. In addition, under high in-group collectivism, the ethical difference between genders tends to decrease at high job positions and under high performance orientation, the ethical difference between genders tends to increase at high job positions. Research limitations/implications – This research depends on secondary data; it is therefore impossible for the author to control the data collection process, which could be an issue for discussion. In addition, because of limited available studies to refer to, the formation of the individual-level moderator, job position, might cause some attention. Practical implications – Corporate education and training in regards to ethical issues becomes even more vital, especially for men, since the statistical results showed that men are more likely than women to be deviant. Meanwhile, organizations can help themselves by recruiting a greater number of females, as this study shows that females are seen to make more ethically sound decisions than males. Furthermore, under the contexts of high in-group collectivism and low performance orientation, both genders in higher job positions tend to be more unethical than people in lower positions. Since people in higher positions have the right and the power to set the ethical tone for the organization (Clinard, 1983; Posner and Schmidt, 1992), it becomes particularly essential for firms to pay close attention to ethical issues in higher job positions. Originality/value – The study proved that the relationship between gender and ethics is more complicated than expected; job position, and cultural values can jointly influence the individual-level relationship. In addition, since human behavior is complicated, employing multilevel method to investigate humane behaviors in the field of management becomes necessary in the future.


2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 96-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evy Rombaut ◽  
Marie-Anne Guerry

Purpose This paper aims to question whether the available data in the human resources (HR) system could result in reliable turnover predictions without supplementary survey information. Design/methodology/approach A decision tree approach and a logistic regression model for analysing turnover were introduced. The methodology is illustrated on a real-life data set of a Belgian branch of a private company. The model performance is evaluated by the area under the ROC curve (AUC) measure. Findings It was concluded that data in the personnel system indeed lead to valuable predictions of turnover. Practical implications The presented approach brings determinants of voluntary turnover to the surface. The results yield useful information for HR departments. Where the logistic regression results in a turnover probability at the individual level, the decision tree makes it possible to ascertain employee groups that are at risk for turnover. With the data set-based approach, each company can, immediately, ascertain their own turnover risk. Originality/value The study of a data-driven approach for turnover investigation has not been done so far.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
James Atta Peprah ◽  
Isaac Koomson ◽  
Joshua Sebu ◽  
Bukari Chei

PurposeDoes financial inclusion matter for productivity among smallholder farmers? The authors answer this question by using the sixth and seventh rounds of the Ghana Living Standard Survey to examine the extent to which financial inclusion affects productivity among smallholder farmers in Ghana.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses a pooled data of the 6th and 7th rounds of the Ghana Living Standard Survey which are national representative data. The authors model an Instrumental Variable (IV) to correct for endogeneity in financial inclusion and a dominance analysis to examine the effects of access to credit, ownership of savings account and insurance product on farmers' productivity.FindingsResults from the study indicate that financial inclusion significantly enhances productivity. Moreover, credit, savings and insurance products influence productivity at various degrees. Thus, expanding the scope of financial services (access to credit, savings and insurance) among smallholder farmers is crucial for inclusive finance and sustainable agricultural production.Practical implicationsThe findings of the study have implications for financial institutions in the design of financial products that the meet the needs of smallholder farmers.Originality/valueSeveral studies have looked at how access to credit influences agricultural productivity in Africa. However, in recent times financial inclusion has been advocated for because it goes beyond mere access to credit. This paper to the best of our knowledge is the first of its kind to examine how financial inclusion could affect agricultural productivity in Ghana.


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