The effect of COVID-19 on financial inclusion in the Kigezi and Lango subregions in Uganda

ABSTRACT The year 2020 opened with tough policy measures to control the rapid spread of COVID-19. We sampled, explored, and analyzed the most recent studies that linked COVID-19 to business and finance. We identified two mitigations, which had strong effects on financial inclusion but had been neglected: lockdown and social distancing. We used lockdown and social distancing to conceptualize COVID-19, and developed two theoretical nexuses among COVID-19 and financial inclusion, and COVID-19 and government policy interventions. We explored each of the nexuses. First, we described the extent of lockdown and social distancing, financial inclusion, and government policy interventions. Second, we compared these nexuses in both the Lango and Kigezi subregions, and explained the significance of the interventions. Third, we used beta coefficients to quantify the effects of COVID-19 on financial inclusion. We provide a solid foundation for compulsive online banking in developing countries.