Understanding How Youth Spend Their Time and Money: Lessons from Useful Research Tools

1. Understanding How Youth Spend Their Time and Money: Lessons from Useful Research Tools Megan Gash of Freedom from Hunger

2. Agenda Financial Diaries Data analysis activity Sample data from savings groups in Mali

3. Introduction • Freedom from Hunger Initiative • Advancing Integrated Microfinance for Youth (AIM Youth) • Provide 37,000 young people (22,000 in Mali and 15,000 in Ecuador) with financial services integrated with youth learner-centered financial education • Youth are ages 13-24 years • Mali – NGOs: savings group program; MFIs: group savings accounts. • Ecuador - cooperatives and credit unions: individual savings accounts.

5. What are financial diaries? • Frequent surveys on financial topics • How differ from other research methods? • More accurate because learn the “real story” • More detail about lives of youth • Strengths: can identify seasons of low and high income, cash flow, when would need more loans, how use different financial services, fluctuations in migration

6. Financial Diaries in the Youth Context • Human subjects protection protocol: university, national statistics office; parental and youth consent • Budget; frequency • Youth like speaking to youth (enumerators); building trust • Incentives to participate: small gifts relevant to youth (300 FCFA value: soap, tea, sugar, trinkets), • Availability: nights and weekends; call day before to confirm • Replacements for migration • Hawthorne effect: learn about money management • Attitude questions work well

7. Study Design • Study design • 72 respondents: 36 treatment, 36 control (matching demographics) • 2 areas; 3 villages per area; 6 respondents per village (18 per area) • Purposeful yet random selection; represent geography, age, gender • Survey design: • Surveys filled with data from last survey; use same enumerators • Every 3 weeks for 3 months; then once a month • Data analysis: • Systematization, periodic receipt • Analyst

8. Lessons Learned • Labor intensive • Cut costs: less frequent surveys, smaller sample • Flexibility, gifts are important to parents • Follow migrating youth? • Control villages could learn about intervention • Same enumerators, ICT data collection if possible • Check data early and often • Consider qualitative follow-up: extra insight, case studies

9. Data Analysis Activity

10. Data Analysis Activity • Instructions: • Form groups of 2-3 people • Review data tables on handout and discuss the following questions (10 minutes total): • How do the outcomes change over time? • What is helpful about knowing how the data changes over time? • Plenary discussion of conclusions (5 mins)

11. Key Results • Results for July 2011 – January 2012 • Mixture of descriptive and impact analysis • Preliminary analysis; some questions unanswered

12. Key Results: Demographics • Savings Group Participant Outcomes (treatment) • 84% are 13-17 years old; 16% are 18-24 • 86% unmarried; 55% in school • Food Security and Poverty Level Outcomes:

13. Savings: Location Where savings group members are saving money: Savings group Livestock 3. With guardian at home “If you had the choice, where would you prefer to save your money?” July: 1) bank, 2) with a guardian, 3) savings group January: 1) savings group, 2) bank, 3) with a guardian

14. Savings: Amount Savings group participants are saving more & building more assets than control group

15. Financial Knowledge Improvements in knowledge: identifying safe places to save money identifying strategies to protect long-term strategies differentiating between good and bad borrowing decisions

16. Financial Attitudes Improvements across all of these 6 indicators… …no improvements: paying unexpected expenses, speaking up at home

17. Summary of Findings: Mali • Youth earn significant amounts of their own money • Youth are using several tools for saving • Youth need access to loans: risk management; support for family • Youth savings groups have been able to increase savings for youth in rural and remote areas • Several positive knowledge & attitude changes!

18. Questions?

19. Thank you!