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Field
Intervention (Hidden)
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Before
Group A - Financial Diary
This group will receive financial diary / household budgeting training only. Participants will self-record household daily income and expenditure over a 12-month period. Because of the memory lapse, the standard recall survey method in existing literature may fail to detect those life event and the coping strategies of the household. By tracing changes in savings and credit instruments of the households after the event,
After the treatment samples were randomized, research assistant will visit the household to discuss the diaries and clarify any remaining questions. Considering the sensitivity of financial matters, we would make sure all the discussion take place at the presence of the participant's family members, including her husband and in-laws.
To maintain an ongoing and regular relationship with the participants, our field workers will visit households bi-monthly to collect data, cross-verify and provide guidance on how to use the diary to record daily cash inflow and outflow.
One of the most important tasks of each visit is to balance the inflow and outflow of income. For example, if the expenses for a given fortnight exceeds the incomes, the interviewer may choose to follow up to understand where the sources of income has come from. We aim to keep this gap below 10 percent.
The most critical factor of the recruitment for this treatment is the willingness of the household to maintain the financial diary throughout the twelve-month period. We use monetary incentives to encourage the budget-keeping activities: the participant got reimbursement every two-weeks if their diary input meets the aforementioned standard. During each visit, our field worker reminded them about the subsequent incentive money they may get in the next visit.
We keep the diary structure simple for the ease of entry: two main columns representing cash inflows (income/borrowing) and outflow (expenditure/lending). At the beginning of each month, the research assistant will give the subject and illustration of the household's income and expenses of the previous month, highlighting any abnormal overspending activities.
Group B
This treatment follows the traditional approach of financial training intervention: each member would take part in a short course of basic financial knowledge using a standardized curriculum. They would be paid for their time and also based on their performance in the exit tests.
The programs would last for 6 weeks and covers 3 modules as following:
Modules 1: Goals, Income, Expenses and Budgeting
Session 1- Seasonal calendar
Session 2- Establishing Goal
Session 3- Understanding income, expenses and creatinga budget
Session 4- Different types of Expenses and Application to budget tools
Modules 2: Savings:
Session 5- Choosing where to save
Session 6- Creating a savings plan
Session 7- Saving for emergencies
Modules 3: Borrowing
Session 8- Borrowing concepts
Session 9- The cost of borrowings
Session 10- Responsible borrowings
Session 11- Comparing financial services
Training was administered by trainers from the same thaka. Each sessions involved lecturing, group discussions with graphical illustrations and field exercises. The training was conducted in the local language and the course content was modified to suit regional specificities.
Each training day started at 10:00AM and went on till 3:00pm on every Monday in 6 consecutive weeks.
Group C
We randomly selected a subset of participants from each treatment A and B to take up financial counselling. At baseline, counsellors will meet with women to identify their financial problems and design coaching sessions in the following categories: preparing budget, obtaining credit/refinancing debt, opening a bank account or small business advice . Throughout the 12-month period, a counselor will visit the household every 3-months to assist them with any problems that arise with household finances or help the women to prepare the budget for the next quarter.
This treatment group also receive the opportunity to have easy access to expert advice - which means that they can get appointment with a advisor outside of the regular visit. This option would create a valuable opportunity to take advantage of the "teachable moments". The counsellor will be experts hired from local banks and NGO.
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After
Group A - Financial Diary
This group will receive financial diary / household budgeting training only. Participants will self-record household daily income and expenditure over a 3-month period. Because of the memory lapse, the standard recall survey method in existing literature may fail to detect those life event and the coping strategies of the household. By tracing changes in savings and credit instruments of the households after the event,
After the treatment samples were randomized, research assistant will visit the household to discuss the diaries and clarify any remaining questions. Considering the sensitivity of financial matters, we would make sure all the discussion take place at the presence of the participant's family members, including her husband and in-laws.
To maintain an ongoing and regular relationship with the participants, our field workers will visit households bi-monthly to collect data, cross-verify and provide guidance on how to use the diary to record daily cash inflow and outflow.
One of the most important tasks of each visit is to balance the inflow and outflow of income. For example, if the expenses for a given fortnight exceeds the incomes, the interviewer may choose to follow up to understand where the sources of income has come from. We aim to keep this gap below 10 percent.
The most critical factor of the recruitment for this treatment is the willingness of the household to maintain the financial diary throughout the twelve-month period. We use monetary incentives to encourage the budget-keeping activities: the participant got reimbursement every two-weeks if their diary input meets the aforementioned standard. During each visit, our field worker reminded them about the subsequent incentive money they may get in the next visit.
We keep the diary structure simple for the ease of entry: two main columns representing cash inflows (income/borrowing) and outflow (expenditure/lending). At the beginning of each month, the research assistant will give the subject and illustration of the household's income and expenses of the previous month, highlighting any abnormal overspending activities.
Group B
This treatment follows the traditional approach of financial training intervention: each member would take part in a short course of basic financial knowledge using a standardized curriculum. They would be paid for their time and also based on their performance in the exit tests.
The programs would last for 6 weeks and covers 3 modules as following:
Modules 1: Goals, Income, Expenses and Budgeting
Session 1- Seasonal calendar
Session 2- Establishing Goal
Session 3- Understanding income, expenses and creatinga budget
Session 4- Different types of Expenses and Application to budget tools
Modules 2: Savings:
Session 5- Choosing where to save
Session 6- Creating a savings plan
Session 7- Saving for emergencies
Modules 3: Borrowing
Session 8- Borrowing concepts
Session 9- The cost of borrowings
Session 10- Responsible borrowings
Session 11- Comparing financial services
Training was administered by trainers from the same thaka. Each sessions involved lecturing, group discussions with graphical illustrations and field exercises. The training was conducted in the local language and the course content was modified to suit regional specificities.
Each training day started at 10:00AM and went on till 3:00pm on every Monday in 6 consecutive weeks.
Group C
We randomly selected a subset of participants from each treatment A and B to take up financial counselling. At baseline, counsellors will meet with women to identify their financial problems and design coaching sessions in the following categories: preparing budget, obtaining credit/refinancing debt, opening a bank account or small business advice . Throughout the 12-month period, a counselor will visit the household every 3-months to assist them with any problems that arise with household finances or help the women to prepare the budget for the next quarter.
This treatment group also receive the opportunity to have easy access to expert advice - which means that they can get appointment with a advisor outside of the regular visit. This option would create a valuable opportunity to take advantage of the "teachable moments". The counsellor will be experts hired from local banks and NGO.
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