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<p>This paper empirically examines the association between mobile banking adoption and household food insecurity in Burkina Faso, using data from the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES). In sub-Saharan Africa, persistent food insecurity raises critical questions about the coping strategies households employ. Growing evidence suggests that digital finance plays an important role in helping unbanked populations manage uninsured risks. Leveraging two waves of the Enquête Harmonisée sur les Conditions de Vie des Ménages (EHCVM) from 2018/2019 to 2021/2022, we apply entropy balancing and fixed-effects regressions to address potential selection bias. Our results show that mobile banking users are significantly less likely to face food insecurity, with stronger associations observed in rural areas—highlighting the importance of digital financial services in remote contexts. Further analysis reveals that mobile banking correlates with greater formal financial inclusion, such as owning bank and microfinance accounts, and increased participation in non-farm entrepreneurship. While our findings align with the growing literature on digital finance and poverty reduction, we emphasize that these are associations, rather than causal effects. Nonetheless, the evidence provides valuable guidance for policymakers seeking to bolster household resilience to food insecurity in Burkina Faso.</p>

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The role of mobile banking in coping with food insecurity in Burkina Faso

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年2月6日

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  • Arouna Kouandou

摘要

This paper empirically examines the association between mobile banking adoption and household food insecurity in Burkina Faso, using data from the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES). In sub-Saharan Africa, persistent food insecurity raises critical questions about the coping strategies households employ. Growing evidence suggests that digital finance plays an important role in helping unbanked populations manage uninsured risks. Leveraging two waves of the Enquête Harmonisée sur les Conditions de Vie des Ménages (EHCVM) from 2018/2019 to 2021/2022, we apply entropy balancing and fixed-effects regressions to address potential selection bias. Our results show that mobile banking users are significantly less likely to face food insecurity, with stronger associations observed in rural areas—highlighting the importance of digital financial services in remote contexts. Further analysis reveals that mobile banking correlates with greater formal financial inclusion, such as owning bank and microfinance accounts, and increased participation in non-farm entrepreneurship. While our findings align with the growing literature on digital finance and poverty reduction, we emphasize that these are associations, rather than causal effects. Nonetheless, the evidence provides valuable guidance for policymakers seeking to bolster household resilience to food insecurity in Burkina Faso.