Assessing the impact of financial inclusion initiatives on the performance of women-owned enterprises in Gombe State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study investigated the impact of some financial inclusion programmes on the performance of women-owned businesses in Gombe state, Nigeria. The study was conducted on the aspects of NFIS, Conditional Cash Transfers (CCT), Digital Financial Services (DFS), Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund (MSMEDF), and Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi). A descriptive survey design was used. The study adopted census method which involved 232 women entrepreneurs who were registered by the Nigerian Association of Small-Scale Industrialists (NASSI) Gombe State Chapter. A total of 232 questionnaires were sent, 209 questionnaires were returned and 204 valid questionnaires were analysed. The data were gathered using a structured questionnaire and subsequently analysed using descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression. The internal consistency, measured by the Cronbach's-Alpha coefficient, showed satisfactory values of 0.818. The regression model was statistically significant (F = 27.152, p < 0.001), R = 0.638, and R² = 0.407 meaning that the five financial inclusion initiatives explained 40.7% of the total variation in enterprise performance. NFIS (β = 0.232, p = 0.025), DFS (β = 0.251, p = 0.038), and MSMEDF (β = 0.367, p < 0.001) had significant positive effects, while CCT (β = 0.032, p = 0.742) and We-Fi (β = 0.074, p = 0.304) were positive but statistically insignificant. The research finds that financial inclusion can be a force to boost women entrepreneurs' enterprises if financial inclusion is translated into productive enterprise investment and usable financial resources. It suggests broadening the availability of secure digital financial services, enhancing access to gender-appropriate enterprise finance, increasing financial education, and minimizing unneeded collateral restrictions, and connecting financial services to business development assistance.