Purpose: Does financial inclusion matter for productivity among smallholder farmers? The authors answer this question by using the sixth and seventh rounds of the Ghana Living Standard Survey to examine the extent to which financial inclusion affects productivity among smallholder farmers in Ghana.Design/methodology/approach: The study uses a pooled data of the 6th and 7th rounds of the Ghana Living Standard Survey which are national representative data. The authors model an Instrumental Variable (IV) to correct for endogeneity in financial inclusion and a dominance analysis to examine the effects of access to credit, ownership of savings account and insurance product on farmers' productivity.Findings: Results from the study indicate that financial inclusion significantly enhances productivity. Moreover, credit, savings and insurance products influence productivity at various degrees. Thus, expanding the scope of financial services (access to credit, savings and insurance) among smallholder farmers is crucial for inclusive finance and sustainable agricultural production.Practical implications: The findings of the study have implications for financial institutions in the design of financial products that the meet the needs of smallholder farmers.Originality/value: Several studies have looked at how access to credit influences agricultural productivity in Africa. However, in recent times financial inclusion has been advocated for because it goes beyond mere access to credit. This paper to the best of our knowledge is the first of its kind to examine how financial inclusion could affect agricultural productivity in Ghana.

The objective of this study is to examine the impact of mobile money (m-money) adoption on some household outcomes such as farm output, welfare (consumption expenditure), and wealth (value of assets). Using primary data collected from three districts in Ghana, three Propensity Score Matching methods were employed to estimate the m-money adoption effect on the household outcomes. It is found that advertisements and higher than basic levels of education, among other variables, were important in influencing the adoption of m-money among smallholder farmers. The adoption of m-money was also seen to have an enhancing effect on the household outcome variables (farm output, welfare, and wealth) of smallholder farmers. The results suggest that mobile money can help enhance some of the smallholder economic outcomes that are relevant for rural development and poverty reduction. Policy options should consider expanding m-money services to smallholder farmers in rural areas.

The question of how much of the potential tax revenue is actually obtained remains very critical in Ghana’s efforts to improve domestic revenue mobilization. This paper computes and examines tax gap and compliance burden among micro and small businesses which constitute more than 90% of Ghana’s informal economy. Using data on 485 businesses in Ghana, the study finds that while some businesses underpay their taxes, surprisingly others actually pay more than expected. The average tax gap is computed to be about GHC 109.2 (US$19.2). Small businesses are associated with a higher tax gap of 24.9% compared to their micro counterparts. Moreover, we find that as compliance burden increases, the tax gap also increases, albeit significant variation in the effect of compliance burden on tax gap across regions and different tax handles. JEL Classification: H25, H26, H27, H32