Market Research on local mobile money sector, customer´s demand and agent performance


IFC is partnering with MTN Cameroon (MTNC) for building a robust mobile money service through improvements in product offering, customers’ demand unlocking, and increments in the productivity of the agent network. MTNC intends to partner with a bank to offer digital savings and loans to its mobile money customers. To this end, both parties seek to understand the drivers for customer usage, current access to savings and loans (formal and informal), necessary criteria to trust an entity which is involved in lending/ savings services, response to digital savings and loans, and customers’ current usage and expectations.

The market research provides actionable recommendations to improve MTNC mobile money offer (products, pricing, distribution, communication) and increase the number of active customers. The assignment focuses on understanding drivers of MTNC customers and agents’ uptake in order to develop relevant products and implement effective marketing campaigns. The market research  digs into the reasons behind low mobile money adoption level and provides a reliable segmentation of MTNC’s customers base.

Services provided

  • Develop a methodology and related work plan to conduct the assignment
  • Conduct an in-depth desk research of Cameroon DFS sector, including a competitor analysis, regulation analysis and on the demand and implementation of digital savings and loans.
  • Elaborating the relevant questionnaires for focus group discussions and quantitative survey based on desk and field research
  • Testing questionnaires
  • Conduct focus groups discussions (FGD) with potential customers of digital savings and loans
  • Conduct a quantitative survey with at least 1,000 customers, exploring the following topics:
  • Overall Access to Finance; Current usage of Mobile Money (MTN and competitors); Adequacy of Mobile Money products offered by MTN; Marketing of product; Demand for Digital Savings and Loans
  • Assess agents’ performances and the value proposition for agents
  • Synthetize findings from the different phases of the research and present results and actionable recommendations