Rwanda FinScope Survey 2024
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Rwanda FinScope Survey 2024
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Funders of Finscope 2024
Sponsors of Finscope 2024
FinScope 2024 is produced by Access to Finance Rwanda (AFR).
Additional information about FinScope may be obtained from AFR.
Address:
Golden Plaza – Kacyiru 3rd Floor 1 KG 546 ST
P.O BOX 1599 Kigali | +250 782 507 751 | [email protected] | www.afr.rw
Recommended citation:
Access to Finance Rwanda, FinScope 2024 report, June 2024
Rwanda FinScope Survey 2024
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FOREWORD
Financial inclusion is a crucial element in promoting national economic development as it
enhances financial stability, promotes economic growth, and reduces poverty. Cognizant of
this fact, the Government of Rwanda has made “Universal Access to Financial Services” one
of its long-term development priorities and commendable efforts, over the implementation
of the National Strategy for Transformation (NST1), were geared towards ensuring that all
segments of the Rwandan population have access to financial services.
On behalf of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) and other Fin-
Scope 2024 sponsors, namely: Access to Finance Rwanda (AFR), the National Bank of Rwanda
(NBR), and the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), I am delighted to introduce
this timely report on financial inclusion in Rwanda – the first produced after the COVID-19
pandemic that affected economies and livelihoods across the world. This is the fifth FinScope
survey report since 2008 when the first FinScope report was produced, and subsequent sur-
veys that were conducted in 2012, 2016, and 2020.
This report provides valuable insights into our progress highlighting the importance of current
strategies and initiatives in driving financial inclusion. Notably, Rwanda has achieved an im-
pressive 96% financial inclusion rate, with formal inclusion at 92%, surpassing the NST1 target
of 90% by 2024. The Rwanda FinScope 2024 findings show that though we are 4% points
behind, the NST1 set target (100%), Rwanda is on the right path. There has been a substantial
increase in formal financial inclusion (insurance, pension, and mobile money) since 2020, re-
ducing the number of adults who are exclusively dependent on informal mechanisms to just
4% in 2024 from 16% in 2020. Progressively, the number of excluded adults has reduced from
7% in 2020 to 4% in 2024. These results highlight great efforts made and areas for improve-
ment as we continue to improve the lives of Rwandans.
The findings of this report align with our national priorities, as outlined in the Financial Sector
Development Strategic Plan (2018-2024) and will inform our policy decisions and guide our
efforts to promote financial inclusion and economic development in Rwanda. The survey also
coincides with the end of the National Strategy for Transformation (NST1) and the Financial
Sector Development Strategic Plan offering an opportunity to inform the design of the next
generation of mid-term development strategies in Rwanda.
I commend AFR as well as other partners who contributed to the production of this very
important report for their rigorous research and analysis, and I encourage all stakeholders to
carefully consider the recommendations presented herein. Together, we can work towards
a more financially inclusive and prosperous Rwanda, where all citizens have access to the
financial services they need to thrive and effectively contribute to Rwanda’s sustainable eco-
nomic development.
Yusuf Murangwa
Minister of Finance and Economic Planning
Rwanda FinScope Survey 2024
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Rwanda Finscope 2024 survey was a collaborative effort–bringing together different
partners, whose contributions are acknowledged below:
First and foremost, we express our gratitude to the FinScope 2024 Technical and Steering
Committee members made of representatives from MINECOFIN, NBR, NISR, and AFR for
technical inputs, their strategic leadership and guidance throughout the process.
We take this opportunity to thank the Ministry of Local Government (MINALOC) and leaders
at district levels for their facilitation during data collection as well as the Ministry in Charge of
Emergency Management (MINEMA) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR) for facilitating access to and data collection in Refugee camps.
We are thankful to various stakeholders from the Government the financial industry, and the
private sector in general, the non-government organizations, and the United Nations Agen-
cies, etc. for their contribution in refining the FinScope2024 questionnaire to meet the needs
of the Rwanda’s market.
We acknowledge the financial support from the Mastercard Foundation, the Swedish Inter -
national Cooperation Agency (Sida), the Luxembourg Agency for Development Cooperation
(LuxDev), Jersey Overseas Aid (JOA), the Rwanda Bankers Association, the National Bank of
Rwanda (NBR) and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN).
We also wish to thank Edge Analytics Solutions and Advisory (EASA) and IRONA Consultants
Ltd for their support in data collection across the country and FinMark Trust for their technical
assistance in data analysis and reporting.
We are grateful for the collective efforts and contributions of all these stakeholders which
have made the Rwanda FinScope 2024 survey a success.
Jean Bosco Iyacu
Chief Executive Officer, Access to Finance Rwanda
Rwanda FinScope Survey 2024
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Foreword
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Acknowledgements
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Contents
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List of Tables
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List of Figures
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Acronyms and Abbreviations
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Executive Summary
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1.
INTRODUCTION
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1.1 Background
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1.2 FinScope surveys
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1.3 FinScope Rwanda 2024 survey objectives
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1.4 Methodology and survey design
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1.4.1 Sampling frame for FinScope 2024
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1.4.2 Questionnaire design and content
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1.5 Survey demographics
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2.
FINANCIAL INCLUSION: ACCESS AND UPTAKE
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2.1 Levels of financial inclusion in Rwanda
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2.2 Overlaps in product use by the financially included
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2.3 Financial Access Strand
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2.4 Summary - Financial inclusion journey
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2.5 Drivers of increased levels of financial inclusion
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2.5.1 Drivers of the banking sector
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2.5.2 Drivers of other formal (non-bank) products and services
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2.5.3 Drivers of informal products/services
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2.6 Transactional accounts
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3.
USAGE OF FINANCIAL PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
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3.1 Banking
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3.1.1 Bank product usage
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3.1.2 Barriers to banking
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3.2 Mobile money usage
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3.3 Microfinance
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3.4 Umurenge SACCO
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3.5 Savings
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3.6 Credit
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CONTENTS
Rwanda FinScope Survey 2024 6 3.7 Insurance and risk management 51 3.8 Mutuelle de Santé 53 3.9 Pension fund sector 53 3.11 Climate change related risks 54 3.12 Covid-19 impact 55 3.13 Remittances 56 3.14 Landscape of access 57 3.15 Depth Strand 58 4 DFS UPTAKE, QUALITY OF FINANCIAL SERVICES AND RESPONSIBLE FINANCE 59 4.1 Digital Financial Services (DFS) 60 4.1.1 Drivers of digital financial services 60 4.2 Quality of financial services and Responsible finance 61 5 IMPACT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES 64 5.1 Financial Needs 65 5.2 Financial health 66 5.2.1 Defining financial health index 67 5.2.2 Managing day-to-day finances 67 5.2.3 Taking advantage of opportunities 67 5.2.4 Resilience towards shocks 68 5.2.5 Control over own financial affairs (Act) 68 5.2.6 Financial health indicator 69 5.3 Summary of the Financial health indicator 70 5.4 Welfare and Vulnerability indicators 70 6 CONCLUSION 71 7 RECOMMENDATIONS 74
Rwanda FinScope Survey 2024
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LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Drivers of bank usage (%) 38
Table 2: Credit strand by demographic characteristics 49
Table 3: Drivers of retirement uptake 54
Table 4: Consumer process of choosing and using financial products (%) 61
Table 5: Statements used to calculate transparency incidence (%) 62
Table 6: Statements about fair treatment (%) 62
Table 7: Statements testing financial knowledge/numeracy (%) 62
Table 8: Universal Financial Needs 66
Table 9: Managing day to day index scores and sub-mean score 67
Table 10: Opportunity index scores and sub-mean score 68
Table 11: Resilient index scores and sub-mean score 68
Table 12: Act index mean scores and sub-means score 68
Rwanda FinScope Survey 2024
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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Demographic profile 22
Figure 2: Financial Inclusion Framework 25
Figure 3: Overview of financial products/services (%) 25
Figure 4: Financial inclusion overlaps 26
Figure 5: Rwanda Financial Access Strand (%) 27
Figure 6: Access Strand by area (%) 28
Figure 7: Access Strand by gender (%) 28
Figure 8: Access Strand by age groups (%) 28
Figure 9: Access Strand by adults with disabilities (%) 28
Figure 10: Access Strand by refugees (%) 28
Figure 11: Access Strand by main income generation activity (%) 30
Figure 12: Access Strand by Provinces (%) 30
Figure 13: Financial Access Strand by Districts (%) 31
Figure 14: Rwandan Access Strand vis-a-vis other countries 32
Figure 15: Financial inclusion journey 33
Figure 16: What drives banking? (%) 34
Figure 17: What drives other formal (non-bank) products/services? (%) 35
Figure 18: What drives informal mechanism uptake? (%) 35
Figure 19: Transaction account strand (bank and mobile wallet) 36
Figure 20: Proportion of adults with no transactional account by demographics (%) 36
Figure 21: Banking status (%) 38
Figure 22: Bank product use (%) 39
Figure 23: Distribution of the banked population – own account 39
Figure 24: Barriers to opening a bank account (%) 39
Figure 25: Mobile money status (%) 40
Figure 26: Mobile money uptake/use by demographics (%) 40
Figure 27: Activities conducted by mobile money users (%) 41
Figure 28: Barriers to opening a mobile wallet (%) 41
Figure 29: MFI usage (%) 42
Figure 30: Penetration of MFIs by demographics 42
Figure 31: Umurenge SACCO penetration (%) 43
Figure 32: Usage of SACCOs by demographics 43
Figure 33: Savings overall (%) 44
Figure 34: Savings Strand (%) 44
Rwanda FinScope Survey 2024
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Figure 35: Saving channels (%)
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Figure 36: Formal and informal usage by demographic characteristics (%)
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Figure 37: Drivers for savings (%)
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Figure 38: Barriers to savings (%)
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Figure 39: Types of investments/assets (%)
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Figure 40: Credit overall (%)
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Figure 41: Credit Strand (%)
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Figure 42: Barriers to credit (%)
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Figure 43: Reasons for borrowing (%)
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Figure 44: Reasons for borrowing (%) – business owners
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Figure 45: Loan refusals and reasons behind loan refusals (%)
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Figure 46: Barriers to borrowing (%)
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Figure 47: Main risks experienced (%)
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Figure 48: Main coping strategies (%)
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Figure 49: Insurance uptake (%)
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Figure 50: Drivers for insurance uptake (%)
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Figure 51: Barriers to insurance (%)
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Figure 52: Pension fund strand (%)
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Figure 53: Old age savings and retirement
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Figure 54: Experienced climate-related events (%)
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Figure 55: Covid-19 effects on livelihoods/income (%)
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Figure 56: Started using or used more financial services or products since
Covid started (%)
56 Figure 57: Remittances – Cross-border and domestic (%) 56 Figure 58: Remittances mechanism 57 Figure 59: Main uses for money received (%) 57 Figure 60: Landscape of access (of those using formal financial products/services) 58 Figure 61 : Depth strand (landscape product portfolio) 58 Figure 62: Digital financial services (%) 60 Figure 63: Channels used to perform financial transactions 61 Figure 64: Statements around banking products and service 63 Figure 65: Financial health strand (%) 69 Figure 66: Summary of the Financial indicator construction and segments 70 Figure 67: Welfare and Vulnerability indicators (%) 70
Rwanda FinScope Survey 2024 10 ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS AFR
Access to Finance Rwanda COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease 2019 DFS
Digital Financial Services EAs
Enumeration Areas EASA Edge Analytics Solutions and Advisory FAS
Financial Access Strands FHS
Financial Health Score FI2.0
Financial Inclusion 2.0 FI
Financial inclusion FMT
FinMark Trust FSDSP Financial Sector Development Strategic Plan FSPs
Financial Service Providers JOA
Jersey Overseas Aid LTSS
Long-Term Saving Scheme LuxDev Luxembourg Development Cooperation Agency MFIs
Microfinance Institutions MINECOFIN Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning MINALOC Ministry of Local Government MSMEs Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises MM
Mobile Money NBR
National Bank of Rwanda NFIS
National Financial Inclusion Strategies NGOs Non-Governmental Organizations NISR
National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda NST1 National Strategy for Transformation OTC
Over-the-Counter RPHC 2022 Rwanda Population and Housing Census 2022 SACCO Savings and Credit Cooperative SDGs Sustainable Development Goals Sida
Swedish International Cooperation Agency USSD Unstructured Supplementary Service Data VSLA Village Savings and Loan Association