Edwin Agwu
In recent times, the opinions of practitioners, academics and others towards financial inclusion has to a large extent assumed a higher level of importance due mainly to their positive perception of its importance as a strong driver of economic growth in every facet of a developing economy. It is assumed that giving access to millions of men and women across the globe that are financially excluded will provide greater opportunities and possibilities for the creation of a very large repository of financial savings and greater wealth generations, thereby eradicating poverty and this leads to economic growth. It is also the belief that if the low income earners, comprising of the unbanked and under-banked, are included financially, it could promote enormous credit creation and capital accumulation. This is because these groups constitute the largest proportion of the population and therefore controls a very large chunk of the economy’s idle funds, though held in very small amounts. But the accumulation of these small amounts can amount to a large pool of cheap long-term investable funds in the economy. This paper explored the benefits, challenges and prospects of this very important yet overlooked veritable economic driver whose usage is long overdue with the aid of secondary data. Findings revealed a plethora of factors such as little or no awareness on the part of the rural dwellers, unemployment, and host of others. It is recommended that government should embark on massive awareness campaign to sensitise the rural dwellers of the need to embrace financial service products and the financial institution managers must burrow into the hinterlands to harness these opportunities which are idling away.