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Effect of Financial Inclusion Education on Students’ Awareness of Formal Financial Services among Accounting Education Students in Nigeria

Abstract

Financial inclusion is an important component of economic and social development because access to appropriate formal financial services enables individuals to save, make payments, transfer funds, obtain credit, manage financial risks, and participate effectively in the formal economy. Despite the increasing availability of banking services, digital payment platforms, mobile financial services, and other formal financial products in Nigeria, some students may have limited knowledge of the nature, benefits, requirements, costs, and risks associated with formal financial services. Limited awareness may affect students’ ability to make informed financial decisions and appropriately utilize regulated financial institutions and financial technologies. Financial Inclusion Education provides an opportunity to improve students’ understanding of formal financial services and develop practical knowledge required for responsible participation in the financial system. Against this background, this study investigates the effect of Financial Inclusion Education on students’ awareness of formal financial services among Accounting Education students in Nigeria. The study will be anchored on Financial Literacy Theory, Theory of Planned Behavior, and Social Cognitive Theory. Financial Literacy Theory explains how knowledge and understanding of financial concepts can improve individuals’ ability to make informed financial decisions and utilize financial services effectively. The Theory of Planned Behavior emphasizes the influence of attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, and behavioural intentions on students’ decisions regarding the use of formal financial services. Social Cognitive Theory emphasizes learning through observation, modelling, social interaction, self-efficacy, reinforcement, and environmental influences. Collectively, these theoretical perspectives provide a suitable framework for explaining how Financial Inclusion Education may influence students’ awareness of formal financial services. The study will adopt a quantitative quasi-experimental research design. The population will comprise Accounting Education students enrolled in selected Nigerian universities and polytechnics. A multistage sampling technique will be used to select institutions, departments, levels of study, classes, and eligible students. Data will be collected using structured questionnaires, financial inclusion awareness scales, financial-service knowledge assessment instruments, scenario-based questions, practical financial-service identification tasks, and pre-test and post-test assessments. Financial Inclusion Education will be assessed using indicators such as exposure to financial inclusion lessons, frequency of educational sessions, understanding of formal financial institutions, commercial banking services, microfinance banking services, savings services, current accounts, deposit accounts, payment services, electronic funds transfers, mobile banking, internet banking, automated teller machines, point-of-sale services, electronic wallets, digital payment platforms, agency banking, bank cards, debit cards, credit cards, account opening procedures, customer identification requirements, financial documentation, transaction procedures, savings products, credit facilities, insurance services, pension services, investment services, financial consumer protection, financial-service costs, transaction charges, interest rates, service fees, account maintenance charges, financial-service eligibility, financial-service accessibility, digital financial services, financial technology, cybersecurity, fraud awareness, privacy protection, responsible financial behaviour, financial-service comparison, complaint procedures, dispute resolution, financial-service regulation, regulated financial institutions, reliable financial information, financial-service advertisements, financial misinformation, and practical financial-service activities. Students’ awareness of formal financial services will be assessed using indicators such as knowledge of commercial banks, microfinance banks, savings accounts, current accounts, deposit services, payment services, electronic funds transfers, mobile banking, internet banking, automated teller machines, point-of-sale services, electronic wallets, digital payment platforms, agency banking, debit cards, credit cards, account-opening requirements, customer identification procedures, financial documentation, transaction procedures, savings products, credit services, insurance services, pension services, investment services, financial-service charges, interest rates, service fees, account-maintenance costs, eligibility requirements, accessibility, digital financial services, financial-technology platforms, cybersecurity practices, fraud risks, privacy protection, consumer rights, complaint procedures, dispute-resolution mechanisms, financial regulation, regulated financial institutions, reliable sources of financial information, and appropriate use of formal financial services. Descriptive statistics will be used to summarize students’ demographic and academic characteristics, exposure to Financial Inclusion Education, existing financial knowledge, and awareness of formal financial services. Inferential statistical techniques, including chi-square tests, paired and independent t-tests, analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), correlation analysis, and logistic or multiple regression analysis where appropriate, will be used to determine the effect of Financial Inclusion Education on students’ awareness of formal financial services. Where a quasi-experimental design is adopted, awareness scores before and after the educational intervention may be compared with those of a control group receiving conventional instruction to determine changes associated with the intervention. Diagnostic tests will also be conducted to assess the reliability, validity, and robustness of the findings. The study is expected to find that Financial Inclusion Education has a significant positive effect on students’ awareness of formal financial services in Nigeria. Students exposed to structured Financial Inclusion Education are expected to demonstrate greater awareness of formal financial institutions, financial products, transaction channels, consumer rights, financial-service costs, and responsible financial practices than students without comparable exposure. Education on commercial banking may improve students’ understanding of the functions and services provided by formal banks. Microfinance education may strengthen awareness of financial services designed for individuals and small businesses that may have limited access to conventional banking. Savings-account education may improve students’ understanding of different deposit products and their purposes. Current-account education may strengthen awareness of transaction-oriented banking services. Payment-service education may improve students’ knowledge of different methods of making and receiving payments. Electronic-funds-transfer activities may strengthen awareness of digital movement of money between accounts. Mobile- and internet-banking education may improve students’ understanding of technology-supported banking services. Automated-teller-machine activities may strengthen awareness of cash withdrawal, deposits, transfers, and other account services. Point-of-sale education may improve students’ knowledge of electronic payment procedures. Electronic-wallet and digital-payment education may increase awareness of alternative formal payment channels. Agency-banking education may improve students’ understanding of financial services delivered through approved agents. Bank-card education may strengthen students’ knowledge of debit and credit card functions. Account-opening education may improve awareness of requirements for accessing formal financial services. Customer-identification education may strengthen students’ understanding of identity-verification procedures. Financial-documentation activities may improve students’ awareness of documents required for banking and financial transactions. Savings-product education may strengthen students’ understanding of saving options and their purposes. Credit-service education may improve awareness of formal borrowing facilities and associated obligations. Insurance education may strengthen students’ understanding of risk-management services. Pension education may improve awareness of formal retirement-saving arrangements. Investment-service education may strengthen students’ knowledge of regulated investment opportunities. Financial-service cost education may improve students’ awareness of transaction charges, service fees, interest rates, and account-maintenance costs. Eligibility education may help students understand requirements for accessing different financial services. Accessibility education may improve awareness of available financial-service channels. Digital-financial-service education may strengthen students’ understanding of technology-supported financial activities. Financial-technology education may improve awareness of emerging formal financial platforms. Cybersecurity education may strengthen students’ ability to recognize and avoid unsafe financial practices. Fraud-awareness activities may improve recognition of common financial-service risks. Privacy-protection education may strengthen students’ awareness of safeguarding personal and financial information. Responsible-financial-behaviour education may improve students’ understanding of appropriate use of financial services. Financial-service comparison activities may strengthen students’ ability to evaluate different financial products. Complaint-procedure education may improve awareness of appropriate channels for reporting service problems. Dispute-resolution activities may strengthen students’ understanding of mechanisms for resolving financial-service complaints. Financial-regulation education may improve awareness of the role of regulated financial institutions and relevant regulatory requirements. Reliable-financial-information activities may strengthen students’ ability to distinguish credible information from misleading financial claims. Financial-service advertisement analysis may improve students’ ability to critically assess promotional information. Practical financial-service scenarios may help students apply their knowledge to realistic financial situations. The study therefore expects accessible, practical, evidence-based, and appropriately structured Financial Inclusion Education to contribute significantly to improved awareness of formal financial services among Accounting Education students in Nigeria. However, the effectiveness of Financial Inclusion Education may be constrained by limited access to formal financial institutions, inadequate financial-literacy resources, poor internet connectivity, unreliable electricity supply, limited exposure to practical banking environments, insufficient digital devices, financial-service costs, complex account-opening requirements, inadequate student participation, limited instructional time, insufficiently trained educators, outdated instructional materials, misinformation, low confidence in formal financial institutions, concerns about financial fraud, privacy concerns, and weak integration of financial inclusion concepts into Accounting Education curricula. The study is expected to contribute to the literature on Financial Inclusion Education, awareness of formal financial services, financial literacy, financial inclusion, accounting education, banking education, digital financial services, commercial banking, microfinance banking, savings services, payment services, electronic funds transfer, mobile banking, internet banking, automated teller machines, point-of-sale services, agency banking, financial technology, financial consumer protection, cybersecurity awareness, financial fraud awareness, financial literacy education, responsible financial behaviour, and financial participation in Nigeria. The findings will provide useful information to the Central Bank of Nigeria, financial institutions, universities, polytechnics, Accounting Education departments, accounting educators, financial-technology organizations, financial-literacy programmes, consumer-protection institutions, policymakers, and other stakeholders regarding strategies for improving students’ understanding of formal financial services. The study will also provide evidence-based recommendations for integrating Financial Inclusion Education into Accounting Education programmes, strengthening students’ knowledge of formal banking and digital financial services, improving awareness of financial-service costs and consumer rights, promoting safe and responsible use of financial technologies, increasing awareness of cybersecurity and financial fraud risks, providing practical exposure to formal financial-service procedures, and strengthening students’ preparedness for effective participation in Nigeria’s formal financial system.

Keywords: Financial Inclusion Education, awareness of formal financial services, financial inclusion, financial literacy, banking services, digital financial services, commercial banking, microfinance banking, mobile banking, internet banking, financial technology, financial consumer protection, Accounting Education students, Nigeria.