Does Agricultural Assets Ownership Matter for Financial Inclusion in Developing Countries? Empirical Evidence Using Bank Inclusion in Haiti

Financial inclusion and particularly bank inclusion is important for economic development and reducing inequality. Both academia and practitioners have been paying attention to financial inclusion. Yet, it remains an issue in many developing countries like Haiti. Over the past decade, Haitian central bank initiated a financial inclusion agenda, but there has been little in-depth analysis of the determinants of this socioeconomic policy outcome. With special attention on agricultural asset ownership, we analyzed for the first time the households’ characteristics influencing bank inclusion, using a multinomial logit regression model. The findings revealed that only 20.6% of the Haitian households had a bank account in 2016/2017, and the farming households were among the most excluded. The study confirmed that age, education, location, household size, wealth and exposure to the media significantly influenced bank inclusion in Haiti. It adds to the literature by revealing that agricultural asset ownership (land or livestock) was not a reliable determinant for improving bank inclusion in developing countries like Haiti. The study recommends both institutional financial policies to encourage closing the gap between farmers and banks.