Zambia Financial Diaries: Interim Report

The Zambia Financial Diaries is a year-long panel study that collects data each week on all transactions performed by respondents - all sales and purchases, income earned from informal of formal labor, uses of financial tools and exchanges of in-kind goods. The purpose of this study is to develop and in-depth understanding of transaction behavior, particularly financial service use, of low-income Zambians and apply that understanding to the development of financial products and services as well as policy that promotes financial inclusion.

This interim report presents initial findings from the study with that aim. The analysis is instructive of the different findings the Financial Diaries can offer but not all avenues of inquiry have been exhausted.