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population growth of about 14% (1,1 million) from 7,1 million in 2020. Most Rwandans about
69% or 5.6 million adults reside in rural areas. Rwanda consists of a youthful population of
about 44% (3.6 million aged 16-30, and slightly more females (52% or 4.2million).
There have been improvements in educational attainments, those with primary qualification
and below dropped to 67% (5.5 million) from 71% (4.9 million) in 2020 and those with sec -
ondary education increased to 27% (2.1 million) from 21% (1.5 million) in 2020. Furthermore,
although 81% (2.6 million) of households are still involved in farming, there has also been a
notable decline in the number of households reliant on farming only down to 50% (1.6 mil-
lion) from 61% (1.7 million) in 2020. This could be attributed to the 35% target of sustainable
urbanisation significant in improving firms’ access to both critical services and a large pool of
labor with a wide variety of skills.
Figure 1: Demographic profile
Rural
69%
Total adult(16+)population
8,2M
Youth
(16-30 years)
44%
Access to phone
87%
Piece work
44%
Self-employed
11%
Primary education
and below
67%
Government
/private worker
7%
Farming
24%
Refugees
1%
Women
52%
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2
FINANCIAL INCLUSION
ACCESS AND UPTAKE
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Financial inclusion refers to the availability and usage of financial products and services
at affordable costs provided by professional institutions to all society segments including
vulnerable and low-income population groups. The measurement of financial inclusion can
be categorised into four dimensions: (i) access to financial services; (ii) usage of financial ser-
vices; (iii) the quality of the products and (iv) impact/welfare on the individuals.
The concept of “financial inclusion” is core to the FinScope methodology, and the framework
below (Figure 2) illustrates the use of financial products and services available in the market.
Financial inclusion takes into consideration the dynamic nature of the Rwandan market and
consumers.
Financially included are individuals who have or use formal and or informal financial prod-
ucts and mechanisms. They may, for example, use someone else’s bank account or be cov-
ered by someone else’s insurance. This includes:
Formally served: Individuals who have or use products or services from financial institutions
regulated by an Act of law (formal financial institutions). The formally served population can
be further segmented into:
Banked
Individuals who have or use
products or services from licensed
commercial banks that are regulated
by the central/reserve bank.
Served by other formal financial
institutions (non-bank):
Individuals who have or use products
or services from financial institutions
regulated by Acts of law but are not
classified as commercial banks.
Informally served: Individuals who have or use products or services from financial institu-
tions that are not regulated (informal financial institutions and mechanisms) and or use com-
munity-based organisations or mechanisms to save or borrow money.
Financially excluded: Individuals who manage their financial lives without the use of any
financial product or mechanism outside of their relationships. When they borrow, they rely on
family or friends and when they save, they save at home.
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Figure 2: Financial Inclusion Framework
Financially included = have/use financial products
and/or services – formal and/or informal
Total adult population 16 years and older in Rwanda
Formally served
= have/use financial products and/or
services provided by a formal financial
institution (bank and/or non-bank). A
formal financial institution is governed
by a legal precedent of any kind and
bound by legally recognised rules.
Banked
= have/use financial products
/ services provided by a bank,
regulated by the Central Bank.
Informally served
= have/use financial products
and/or services which are not
regulated and operate without
legal governance that would
be recognised, e.g. tontine or
moneylenders.
Served by other formal financial institutions
= have/use financial products/services provided by other regulated
(non-bank) financial institutions, e.g. mobile money, SACCO or
insurance, MFIs, pension fund, NDFIs, Fintechs, etc.
Financially excluded = do not have/use any
financial products and/ or services – neither formal
nor informal.
2.1 Levels of financial inclusion in Rwanda
Figure 3 highlights the overall financial products and services that Rwandans use in meeting
their financial needs not eliminating product overlaps. Financial inclusion in Rwanda has
reached 96% (7.8 million) up from 93% in 2020, getting closer to the universal access of
100% set target. There has been huge growth in formal financial inclusion or formally served
from 77% (5.4 million) in 2020 to 92% (7.5 million) in 2024 surpassing the set target of 90%
by 2024. Uptake and use of other formal non-bank products and services have drastically
increased to 92% (7.5 million) from 75% (5.3 million) in 2020 driven largely by mobile mon-
ey. The proportion of banked individuals remained similar with a slight increase in absolute
numbers to 2020 (22%/1.6 million in 2020 vs 22%/1.8 million). While informal mechanisms
or informally served continue to be relevant alternatives for adult Rwandans, there has been
a decline to 72% (5.9 million) in 2024 from 78% (5.6 million) in 2020. Only 4% (316,000) of
Rwandan adults are neither using formal nor informal financial products and or services (i.e.
financially excluded).
Figure 3: Overview of financial products/services (%)
4
96
92
92
72
Financial inclusion overview 2024
93
77
22
75
78
Financial inclusion overview 2020
22
7
Financially included
Formally served
Banked
Other Formal (non-bank)
Informal
Excluded
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2.2 Overlaps in product use by the financially included
Consumers generally use a combination of financial mechanisms/channels to fulfil their fi-
nancial requirements. For instance, someone may be banked and receive their salary through
a bank account while also participating in a savings group. Their financial needs may be met
by both formal and informal products and services.
The comparisons between 2020 and 2024 reveal a shift caused mainly by increased uptake in
other formal non-bank products (Figure 4).
•
Two-thirds (68%/ 5.5 million) of adults use a combination of formal and informal mech-
anisms to manage their financial needs (up from 63%/ 4.4 million in 2020). About 16%
(1.3 million) of adults use all three combinations that are banks, non-bank formal, and
informal, while about half of the Rwandans 52% (4.2 million) use a combination of non-
bank formal products and informal mechanisms (up from 35%/2.5 million in 2020). This
indicates that Rwandans’ needs are not fully met by the formal sector alone.
•
About 18% (1.5 million) of Rwandan adults use only other formal non-bank products con-
tributing to driving formal financial inclusion. Interestingly, no adults rely solely on bank
services; instead, they use a combination of products like insurance, pension, or mobile
money.
•
There has been a significant decline in adults relying only on informal products (16%/ 1.1
million in 2020 versus 4%/ 317,000 in 2024). This indicates that those who used to rely ex-
clusively on informal mechanisms are now also able to use formal financial products/ser-
vices like mobile money or financial agents. The vulnerability, therefore, is being reduced.
Figure 4: Financial inclusion overlaps
16%
6%
0.%
Banked
0.%
Other formal
(non-bank)
18%
2024 (%)
2020 (%)
Informal
4%
Excluded
4%
Excluded
7%
52%
16%
6%
0%
Banked
0%
Other formal
(non-bank)
8%
Informal
16%
46%
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2.3 Financial Access Strand
The FinScope Access Strand is a key indicator in determining and segmenting financial in-
clusion. It is constructed based on the premise that the goal of financial inclusion initiatives
is formal financial inclusion. The Access Strand removes overlaps and classifies the usage
of products from those who are banked to adults who use informal mechanisms only. It is,
therefore, constructed to illustrate the:
% of adults who are banked, i.e. % of adults who are served by commercial banks
% of adults who are formally served but not banked, i.e. % of adults who are served by
non-bank formal financial institutions but not by commercial banks
% of adults who are informally served but not formally served, i.e. % of adults who are
only informally served
% of adults who are financially excluded.
Access strand figure 5 illustrates the following:
Around 22% (1.8 million people) of Rwandans are banked or have bank accounts in
their name
The percentage of adults who are not banked but use non-bank formal financial
services increased significantly to 70% (5.7 million) in 2024 from 55% (3.8 million) in
2020, driven largely by mobile money usage.
The proportion of adults exclusively using informal products, without any formal
products, dropped to 4% from 16% (1.1 million) in 2020.
Financial exclusion has dropped by three percentage points from 7% in 2020 to 4%
in 2024. Approximately 317,000 adult Rwandans are financially excluded. These in-
dividuals neither use formal nor informal products but may be saving at home and
borrowing from friends and family.
Figure 5: Rwanda Financial Access Strand (%)
22
22
70
55
4
16
4
7
2024
2020
Formally served (77%)
Formally served (92%)
Banked Other Formal (non-bank) Informal ONLY Excluded
Comparisons of financial access strands among demographic categories reveal that a ‘one
size fits all’ approach will not be successful. Tailored interventions are the most likely to lead
to desired outcomes. Figures 6-11 show different Financial Access Strands (FAS) across vari-
ous factors.
FAS by area: The urban-rural gap between financially included adults has reduced to 1% in
2024 from 6% in 2020. About 96% of the rural populace is financially included, versus 97% of
the urban population. The increased usage of formal financial products has assisted greatly in
reducing the exclusion rates in both urban and rural areas. Though the overall financial inclu-
sion gap has reduced, the rural populace still lags in the uptake of banking services.
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Formal inclusion in urban areas is driven chiefly by the high uptake of banking services and
mobile money, while in rural areas, it is driven mostly by mobile money. Reliance on exclu-
sively informal products and mechanisms has significantly reduced among the rural popula-
tion.
Figure 6: Access Strand by area (%)
Rural 2020
Urban 2020
Rural 2024
Urban 2024 39
14
56
11
56
76
39
60
2
6
3
20
3
4
3
9
Banked Other Formal (non-bank) Informal ONLY Excluded
FAS by gender: The financial inclusion gender gap remained at 1% in favor of males, 96% of
females are financially included, versus 97% of males. The gender gap increases to 4% when
we look at the formally served males (94%) versus females (90%). The use of non-bank formal,
especially mobile money is driving inclusion and reducing reliance on exclusively informal
mechanisms among both males and females. A higher proportion of unbanked females (73%)
are using other formal channels versus 67% of males. Though there is a decline in the use of
banking services by both males and females, males are more likely to use bank services, 10%
higher than females (17%).
Figure 7: Access Strand by gender (%)
17
27
19
26
73
67
54
55
6
3
19
12
4
3
8
7
Female 2024
Male 2024
Female 2020
Male 2020
Banked Other Formal (non-bank) Informal ONLY Excluded
FAS by age groups: The uptake of formal products or services is high among all age groups,
with mobile money pushing the boundaries for both youth and seniors. However, the exclu-
sion rate is high among young adults aged between 16 and 17 years as they are more likely
to be unserved or underserved, and still studying. Similarly, senior adults (61+) also are likely
to be excluded as they may not be technologically savvy to adopt mobile financial products
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Figure 8: Access Strand by age groups (%)
Banked
Other Formal (non-bank)
Informal ONLY
Excluded
2020
61+ (2024)
2020
31-60 (2024)
2020
18-30 (2024)
2020
16-17 (2024)
2020
Adults (31+)
2020
Youth (16-30)
18
18
14
4
6
12
5
3
16
5
8
16
18
36
4
4
13
9
4
2
15
4
7
7
21
10
24
24
12
4
20
20
26
26
18
18
72
56
69
54
64
42
73
58
69
54
68
52
People with disabilities: About 93% of people with disabilities use formal financial products
or informal services to meet their needs. Mobile money (66%) and Umurenge SACCOs (34%)
played a more significant role in pushing the boundaries of formal financial access for this
group.
Figure 9: Access Strand by adults with disabilities (%)
Banked
Other Formal (non-bank)
Informal ONLY
Excluded
15
14
57
74
18
5
9
7
Within disabled
people (2024)
Within disabled
people (2020)
Refugees: Access to a financial transaction account helps refugees and other displaced people become self-reliant and economically independent. It is normal in other markets that many refugees would have no access to banks and other mainstream financial services. This creates an enormous hurdle on their way to self-reliance and economic independence. However, this is not the case in Rwanda, where specific interventions and supportive policies facilitate higher financial inclusion among refugees as 37% of refugees have bank accounts. Further 62% rely on other formal (non-bank) financial products or services to meet their needs, mobile money and Umurenge SACCOs. Figure 10: Access Strand by refugees (%) Banked Other Formal (non-bank) Informal ONLY Excluded Total Population Refugees 37 22 62 70 4 1 4