Technology Adoption and the Banking Agency in Rural Kenya

Abstract

The paper looks at the ways of approaching the promotion of Mobile and Agency Banking technology adoption and its diffusion in Kenya. Technology adoption climates in developing countries are, by nature, problematic, characterized by poor business and governance conditions, low educational levels, and inappropriate infrastructure. The paper is informed by comparative survey data obtained from SMEs and Bank Agents in Karatina and Likuyani, both districts in rural set ups in Kenya. The study establishes that though a variety of mobile and agency banking services are on offer, only a very small proportion of customers who access it, actually use it. The paper recommends intervention addressing both internal and external factors that inhibit mobile and agency banking technology adoption to the full in rural Kenya and other similar developing countries.

Keywords: Mobile and Agency Banking; Technology Adoption