I turned on the radio and joined National Public Radio’s (NPRs) show “Talk of the Nation” in progress. One the show as a woman from Kenya talking about how phones are used for “mbanking”. I really wanted to share what we learned from our interviews with youth-headed households in rural Swaziland on their mobile use. Not only did these youth who have very limited access to resources own a mobile phone, they used these phones creatively as a survival tool. Uses ranged from “flashing” (calling a phone and then hanging up before you are charged) neighbors during a break-in, receiving requests for work and payment via mobile, and calling relatives in town for emotional and material support.
I called Gcina Dube, our partner on the ground who helped up conduct our interviews, and patched him in the NPR’s call in number. But by the time we did that, got screened, the show was wrapping up. Stay tuned for more information from our research….
To check out the show on mBanking in Kenya, be sure to visit: