Kagotho Njeri, Ssewamala Fred M, Patak-Pietrafesa Michele, Byansi William
Njeri Kagotho, PhD, is assistant professor, College of Social Work, Ohio State University, 1947 College Road, 325-E Stillman Hall, Columbus, OH 43210; e-mail:
Soc Work. 2018 Jan 1;63(1):67-74. doi: 10.1093/sw/swx056.
In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), youths (23 years or younger)-who account for almost half the population-are particularly vulnerable to poverty and exclusion from financial markets and intermediaries. In addition, a significant factor in the financial instability of the region appears to be the economic functioning of its youths. In recent years, social work interventions throughout the region have focused on investing in the economic functioning of youths. This study looked at baseline data from one such intervention in Kenya (N = 3,965), using the financial capabilities framework to evaluate the factors related to youths' saving behaviors. Authors investigated the association between youths' financial literacy (that is, knowledge, socialization), financial access, and financial capabilities and savings behaviors. Results indicate that adolescents who rate themselves as financially literate and those living in close proximity to a bank are more likely to report higher capabilities. Furthermore, financial capabilities in turn partially mediate the relationship between financial literacy, access, and savings. Overall, the study's findings point to the positive effect of enhanced financial capabilities among youths and offer support for asset-based interventions targeting youths in SSA.
在撒哈拉以南非洲地区（SSA），占人口近一半的年轻人（23岁及以下）尤其容易陷入贫困，并且被金融市场和中介机构排斥在外。此外，该地区金融不稳定的一个重要因素似乎是年轻人的经济活动。近年来，该地区各地的社会工作干预措施都集中在对年轻人的经济活动进行投资。本研究考察了肯尼亚一项此类干预措施的基线数据（N = 3965），使用金融能力框架来评估与年轻人储蓄行为相关的因素。作者调查了年轻人的金融知识（即知识、社会化程度）、金融渠道以及金融能力与储蓄行为之间的关联。结果表明，自认为具备金融知识的青少年以及居住在银行附近的青少年更有可能报告较高的能力。此外，金融能力反过来部分地调节了金融知识、金融渠道与储蓄之间的关系。总体而言，该研究结果表明增强年轻人的金融能力具有积极作用，并为针对撒哈拉以南非洲地区年轻人的基于资产的干预措施提供了支持。
