Mobile Credit and Performance: Experience and Lessons from Micro and Small Enterprises in Kenya

Abstract

Micro and small enterprises sector is considered as very important in growing the economies of many countries, especially the developing nations. In Kenya, the Micro and small enterprises sector is an important contributor to the growth of the economy through facilitation of trade and creation of employment. While various interventions have been made to grow this sector, the enterprises have continued to perform poorly, struggle to survive and a large number die off. This study sought to investigate the effect of mobile credit on performance of micro and small enterprises. The study was to determine the effect of accessibility, the effect of the cost, the effect of mobile credit loan amount and the effect of regulation on performance of micro and small enterprises. The study was anchored on various theories of Resource based view, Dynamic capabilities, Diffusion of technology, Credit rationing, and the asymmetry of information. The study found out that the accessibility of mobile credit, the Loan amount and the regulation have significant positive effect on performance, while the cost of mobile credit has a significate negative effect on the performance of micro and small enterprises. The study concluded that mobile credit is an essential source of credit to micro and small enterprises. Keywords: Mobile credit, Micro and small enterprises, Performance, Resource based view, Dynamic capabilities theory.