Banking Swaziland's unbanked

Abstract

The attention of information, communications, and technology (ICT) designers, developers, implementers, consultants, and venture capitalists, in the banking arena, has been focused on the corporate sector and on the commercial and corporate applications of ICT. Banking technology usage such as those by lower-income communities, have been marginalised and largely left unattended. During the past five years, activities, behaviours, and attitudes of the financial services industry increased, in favour of the under-serviced mass market. Global growth of electronic payment banking systems and usage has brought about a considerable amount of technological advancement. The low-income market has become a subject of interest by ICT solution providers, banks and credit-offering incumbents , academics, government, and alternative non-banks and non-governmental organisations (NGO’s). Despite the global increase in interest and technology usage, the inability to act on the augment, within the borders of Swaziland, is the primal focus of this research. Swaziland’s mass market can be transformed and banked through the proper deployment of ICTs. The ability to bank the un-banked, in viewing ICT as the enabler of the small society along with its various communities; those excluded because of cultural and educational restrictions; physical location and low income constraints; the disabled etc., can be achieved. This dissertation investigates and analyses the present situation of banking in Swaziland, the related entities involved, and attempts to formulate an appropriate strategy for the successful implementation of a suitable banking solution in the Swazi context. This includes the recognition that access, to any ICT, in itself is insufficient, and illustrates, through the use of community informatics (CI), systems theory, change management theory, and the essential pre-study towards the utilisation of ICT deployed on a grand scale.