Financial Inclusion and Sustainable Development: How Do Financial Literacy and Social Capital Mediate This Relationship?

This article investigates how mediating variables such as financial literacy and social capital can be used in the relationship between financial inclusion and sustainable development in the Pakistani educational sector. A quantitative survey design was used to gather data on educators, students, and stakeholders, in order to quantify financial inclusion, financial literacy, social capital, and sustainable development. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed to analyze the proposed relationships with SmartPLS. The results show that there are positive and significant correlations between financial inclusion and financial literacy, along with social capital and sustainable development. The findings also indicate that the connection between financial inclusion and sustainable development is associated with financial literacy and social capital. The present study can be useful because it describes the connection between financial access and sustainable results—based on financial knowledge, trust, cooperation, and networks—and provides implications for policymakers, educators, and financial institutions in practice.