Thirteenth Global Studies Conference

Abstract

From the early 2000s, the state policies in Kenya facilitated rolling out of state programmes and further market liberalisation. Such strategies facilitated an environment for a thriving micro-finance sector and the expansion of Information Communication Technology (ICT). The 2007 innovation of mobile money transfer system called M-Pesa was one of the most significant innovation that has been revolutionising the livelihoods of Kenyans since then. The convergence of proliferation of micro-financing and mobile money transfer systems is seen as increasing the capacity of particularly young generation towards financial inclusion and entrepreneurship. We consider how the mobile money revolution has not only spurred economic expansion, but has also facilitated a resurrection of intrinsic mechanisms for the rural dwellers to mitigate severe poverty. In this regard, women dominated self-help groups, youth entrepreneurial groups, and individual activities have mimicked and tapped into state building and economic growth strategies, while maintaining their uniqueness to a local context. Thus, the mobile money transfer systems have been providing a platform to assert and reinvent the meaning and value of rural livelihoods. Not only have the rural poor been using mobile money transfer technology to improve their economic status, but also to expand their participation in placing claims to state’s distribution of resources as well as expanding their democratic space.