How Equitable is Access to Finance in Turkey? : Evidence from the Latest Global FINDEX
Access to finance is a key component of poverty reduction, as it enables individuals to make economic decisions that can improve their welfare. The equality of access among different groups in society is also crucial for correctly allocating the po...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2016
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2016/01/25838801/equitable-access-finance-turkey-evidence-latest-global-findex http://hdl.handle.net/10986/23721 |
| Summary: | Access to finance is a key component of
poverty reduction, as it enables individuals to make
economic decisions that can improve their welfare. The
equality of access among different groups in society is also
crucial for correctly allocating the positive benefits of
improved financial services. In Turkey, bank account, debit
card, and credit card ownership, which can serve as the main
indicators of access to finance, are at a remarkably high
level. However, adjusting the coverage rate of these
indicators by controlling for age, education, gender, an
income reveals that gender is the main source of inequality
in Turkey at the individual level. Despite the progress made
in addressing the gender disparity in access to finance
between 2011 and 2014, females in Turkey continue to be
financially less included. Moreover, Turkey's low level
of savings and high rate of informal borrowing compared with
its peers diminish individuals' resilience to future
shocks. Promisingly, Turkey has been able to improve its
rate of savings significantly over the past few years,
although it continues to be among the countries that save at
a lower level. |
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