Evaluating digital financial inclusion: a Kenyan perspective on morality and finance

The evaluation of financial inclusion has focussed on metrics of access, use and impact on poverty. This paper suggests an alternative based on Sen’s Capability Approach: that inter-personal comparisons of welfare should be made on the basis of the ‘beings’ and ‘doings’ that people have reason to value because they promote their wellbeing. We then draw on research that explored what it means to live a good life in Kenya and how financial practices supported this goal. This reveals the importance of relationships and morality inherent in informal financial practices. Digital financial services that enhance these logics have the potential to promote wellbeing – as mobile money has shown. However, as the digital revolution gathers pace, we highlight its potential to enhance or undermine how financial services contribute to the values embedded in this relational and moral understanding of what it means to live well.