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Randomized Control Trial of a Comprehensive Financial Inclusion Program in Papua New Guinea
Last registered on June 29, 2020
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information
General Information
Title
Randomized Control Trial of a Comprehensive Financial Inclusion Program in Papua New Guinea
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0002402
Initial registration date
August 30, 2017
Last updated
June 29, 2020 2:56 AM EDT
Location(s)

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Primary Investigator
Name
Christopher Hoy
Affiliation
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Other Primary Investigator(s)
PI Name
Russell Toth
PI Affiliation
University of Sydney
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Additional Trial Information
Status
On going
Start date
2017-09-04
End date
2020-10-31
Keywords
Finance & Microfinance
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
O12, O16
Secondary IDs
Abstract
This study is a randomized control trial evaluation of a comprehensive financial inclusion program in Papua New Guinea.
External Link(s)
Registration Citation
Citation
Hoy, Christopher and Russell Toth. 2020. "Randomized Control Trial of a Comprehensive Financial Inclusion Program in Papua New Guinea." AEA RCT Registry. June 29. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.2402-8.4.
Former Citation
Hoy, Christopher, Christopher Hoy and Russell Toth. 2020. "Randomized Control Trial of a Comprehensive Financial Inclusion Program in Papua New Guinea." AEA RCT Registry. June 29. http://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/2402/history/71370.
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details
Interventions
Intervention(s)
The three main components of this comprehensive financial inclusion program are:
- Financial literacy training on the benefits of savings and learning how to budget;
- Fee-free bank accounts will be offered to financial literacy training participants at the end of each training session;
- SMS savings reminders will be sent to financial literacy training participants who open a bank account at the end of the training.
Intervention Start Date
2017-09-04
Intervention End Date
2018-04-15
Primary Outcomes
Primary Outcomes (end points)
The main outcomes of interest are as follows:
- increased savings behavior
- more ‘inclusive decision making’ within households
- better financial planning
- improved financial literacy
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
See the survey instrument attached to this registration. The main outcomes of interest are measured based upon the following questions in the survey instrument:
- increased savings behavior (Questions D1 to D5 and E1 to E4)
- more ‘inclusive decision making’ within households (Questions F1 to F5)
- better financial planning (Questions C1 to C7)
- improved financial literacy (Questions B1 to B3)
Secondary Outcomes
Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)
Experimental Design
Experimental Design
The experiment is a randomized control trial, with treatment randomized at the village level (known as ward level in Papua New Guinea).

The impact of the interventions will be evaluated via face-to-face surveys with households, as well as with data from financial institutions.

Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
The villages were stratified by the 5 sub-districts (known as local level government units in PNG) in the district that the trial is set to take place in. Half the villages in each sub district were randomly selected to receive the treatment. The randomization process occurred in the field through a lottery system. The following video documents the random selection of villages for one of the sub-districts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWJmVkjTjOw&feature=youtu.be
Randomization Unit
Village level (known as ward level in Papua New Guinea).
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes
Experiment Characteristics
Sample size: planned number of clusters
There are 81 clusters in total (41 treatment villages and 40 control villages).
Sample size: planned number of observations
Around 20-25% of households in each of the 81 ‘accessible’ villages will be surveyed. This results in a total sample size of around 3000 households.
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
The survey will consist of approximately 1500 households in the 41 treatment villages and 1500 households in the control villages.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Statistical power calculations were undertaken to determine the appropriate sample size. The following conservative assumptions were made based upon existing program data, an existing survey and the implementing partner's experience conducting these trainings in other parts of PNG. • Currently around 60% of households have access to a formal financial product • Around 20% of households in a treatment village will attend the financial literacy training • Of the households that attend the training, around half will gain access to a bank account who previously did not have access • Therefore, on average, the estimated effect size is 10 percentage points • An intra-cluster correlation of 0.08 is used Based upon these assumptions, a sample size of around 2800 households in 80 villages (40 treatment and 40 control) would have statistical power of 0.8.
Supporting Documents and Materials

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IRB
INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARDS (IRBs)
IRB Name
IRB Approval Date
IRB Approval Number
Analysis Plan

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