Impact of Mobile Money Technology on Sheabutter Marketing in Tolon District, Ghana
Rubainatu Osman
Department of Agribusiness, University for Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana.
Hamida Shiraz *
Department of Agribusiness, University for Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana.
Hubeida Abdulai
Department of Agribusiness, Tamale Technical University, Tamale, Ghana.
Fairuzah Yahaya Iddi
Department of Agricultural and Food Economics, University for Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Sheabutter processing and marketing is a major traditional enterprise among women in the Northern Ghana. The use of mobile technology has increased rapidly in many developing countries including Ghana. Looking at the unique marketing and other forms of transactions among women in the shea industry, it is essential for the industry to adopt mobile technology to ensure smooth transaction and market transformation. Mobile money technology adoption and shea butter marketing among women was studied by using cross-sectional survey data from Tolon District in Northern Ghana. A total of 250 women sheabutter processors and marketers in 13 communities in the district was selected randomly in 2022. The impact of mobile money technology adoption was analyzed using the Heckman Treatment model, and revealed that the adoption of mobile money technology had positive impact on sheabutter marketing. The factors influencing mobile technology adoption were also examined using the Probit model. The study recommends that expansion of mobile technology networks, increased investment in education, provision of credit facilities to processors can improve the sheabutter business. Women processors in rural communities should be trained on how to use mobile phones to access financial services by telecommunication companies and NGOs.
Keywords: Mobile money technology, sheabutter marketing, constraints, Tolon District