THE DETERMINANTS OF FINANCIAL LITERACY AMONG MARKET WOMEN IN GHANA.

Abstract

The study focused on the determinants of financial literacy among market women in the SME sector in Ghana. A total of 145 market women in the SME sector participated in this study. These samples have been processed and analyzed using SPSS software version 21 and Microsoft excel. The study found that, out of the three determinants of financial literacy studied (age, education and income), two of the determinants (level of education and level of income) of the market women in the SME sector in Ghana have significant positive relationship with the level of financial literacy. The study also established that 67.5% of variation in the level of financial literacy can be explained by the determinants ( age, education and income level) and the remaining 32.5% of the level of financial literacy are explained by other factors not captured in the multiple linear regression model. The study recommends to institutions such as Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), microfinance institutions and other regulatory bodies to educate market women in the informal sector on the basic financial concepts in order to boost their risk profile and enable them to access credit. The study is also limited to the Kumasi metropolis in the Ashanti region, however there are ten regions in the country hence this will inhibit the generalization of the findings. Future studies could consider other geographical locations in their quest to contribute to the subject area.