abstract: 'MotivationSavings are an important but often overlooked component of

  financial inclusion. While women are less active than men in the formal

  financial sector there is little understanding about their ability to

  accumulate savings.

  PurposeWe hypothesize that a woman''s individual economic status,

  measured by her property ownership, is an important driver of her

  ability to save.

  Approach and MethodsWomen are considered as savers in the formal sector

  only if they have savings above a minimum threshold. Three measures of

  women''s asset ownership are used: two capture their absolute property

  status and one their relative status in the household. The data are

  obtained from three large-scale surveys that collected individual-level

  asset data in Ecuador, Ghana and the Indian state of Karnataka. Logistic

  regression models are employed to examine the relationship between

  women''s property ownership and accumulation of savings.

  FindingsThe absolute value of a woman''s physical assets and her share of

  household physical wealth are correlated with being able to accumulate

  formal savings. Women''s relative wealth status is more strongly related

  to their savings, along with education, paid employment and group

  membership.

  ConclusionsWomen''s intrahousehold status, defined by their relative

  wealth, is critical to determining their ability to save in formal

  accounts.

  Policy ImplicationsInterventions that boost women''s bargaining power, by

  increasing their property ownership, should be encouraged, along with

  greater efforts to improve girls'' access to quality education.

  Functional literacy training for older women can both reduce barriers to

  accessing financial institutions and create awareness of their benefits.

  Constraints to women''s participation in the labour force should be

  removed in tandem with interventions to reduce gender earnings gaps.'
affiliation: 'Oduro, AD (Corresponding Author), Univ Ghana, Accra, Ghana.

  Doss, Cheryl, Univ Oxford, Oxford, England.

  Swaminathan, Hema; Suchitra, J. Y., Indian Inst Management Bangalore, Bangalore,
  Karnataka, India.

  Deere, Carmen Diana; Anglade, Boaz, Univ Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 USA.

  Oduro, Abena D., Univ Ghana, Accra, Ghana.'
author: Doss, Cheryl and Swaminathan, Hema and Deere, Carmen Diana and Suchitra, J.
  Y. and Oduro, Abena D. and Anglade, Boaz
author-email: aoduro@ug.edu.gh
author_list:
- family: Doss
  given: Cheryl
- family: Swaminathan
  given: Hema
- family: Deere
  given: Carmen Diana
- family: Suchitra
  given: J. Y.
- family: Oduro
  given: Abena D.
- family: Anglade
  given: Boaz
da: '2023-09-28'
doi: 10.1111/dpr.12424
eissn: 1467-7679
files: []
issn: 0950-6764
journal: DEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW
keywords: financial institutions; formal savings; gender; immoveable property
keywords-plus: BANKING; GENDER; RIGHTS; POOR
language: English
month: MAR
number: '2'
number-of-cited-references: '39'
orcid-numbers: Doss, Cheryl/0000-0001-8292-3295
papis_id: a3e5929b02f9b25f359cd6bc4d290ab9
ref: Doss2020womenassets
times-cited: '4'
title: 'Women, assets, and formal savings: A comparative analysis of Ecuador, Ghana
  and India'
type: Article
unique-id: WOS:000511450800002
usage-count-last-180-days: '1'
usage-count-since-2013: '12'
volume: '38'
web-of-science-categories: Development Studies
year: '2020'